gold group implemention phase & final report 363 sec_11_final draft

May 1

4th

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Gold Group Office Supplies

Gold Group ISYS 363 Group Leader – Seth Breedlove Team Members – Dung Nguyen & Agnieszka Patykowska

Gold Group Office Supplies -California

08

Gold Group Office SuppliesG.I.I.T.S Implementation Phase and Final ReportSeth Breedlove, Dung Nguyen & Agnieszka Patykowska ISYS 363_11

Gold Group Office Supplies 2008

Table of Contents

1. Executive overview

Pg. 3

2. Initial Proposal Pg.

4

3. Feasibility Study

Pg. 6

4. Application Design Pg.

15

5. Prototyping/Data Definitions

Pg. 21

6. Project Summary

Pg. 22



Executive Overview

Database Overview:

Gold Group Information Technology Division is pleased to present a fully

functional prototype of G.I.I.T.S. The department has been successful in

implementing all of its goals as originally planned, including all necessary

inputs and forms as described in the initial proposal.

G.I.I.T.S is now able to provide the integration between customer service,

employee sales, inventory management and vendor management that Gold

Group previously did not have. Now with real time communication between

the sales floor, warehouse and vendors, just in time inventory has

eliminated back orders and unable to fill orders as well as excess inventory.



G.I.I.T.S also alerts sales reps to the amount of inventory that has been

allotted to customers and are not available for sale to provide better

customer service and warehouse management. Service agents are now able

to track customer orders in real time with shippers in order to provide

customers with real time information and are better able to respond to any

issues.

Employees at all levels are able to add new customers, products and

suppliers with easy to use forms. Managers are now easily able to create up

to the moment reports to accurately ascertain which products are selling,

agent sales and predict when new inventory will be arriving. With real time

reporting, managers are also able to spot top selling agents and produce

market analysis reports.

Implementation:

Employee and vendor training is on target to meet the June16th, 2008

deadline and is ahead of schedule to be phased into the warehouse as

described in the feasibility study. At this time they system will work side by

side with the legacy system to observe for potential bugs and employee

training and usage issues. After a three-week run, this implementation

phase will be analyzed before being phased into the stores on August 18th,

2008.

Gold Group Leader ISYS 363 – 11

Initial Proposal

Gold Group Office Supplies is growing at an average rate of 20% per year. It

has become vital that the management of our vendors, inventories, sales

and customers increase in efficiency. To meet these demands, it is



important to implement an information system that can grow with our

current rate of growth. This system shall be referred to as Gold’s Inventory

Information Tracking System, or G.I.I.T.S.

OBJECTIVE

In 2006, Gold Group Office Supplies’ revenues have exceeded $2,000,000

per year. Our targeted revenue is $5,000,000 by 2011. By December 2008,

our goal is to have implemented and trained staff and vendors on a G.I.I.T.S.

SCOPE OF SERVICES

1. System Requirements

A. The application should be web based to provide the best mobility

possible.

B. The application should be provided, updated and maintained by an

outside vendor, to avoid development and maintenance cost.

The system is required to provide the following services.

A. Vendor Management

B. Purchase order generation

C. Track inventory/purchases in real time.

D. Track orders and status.

E. Track Receiving

F. Manage Inventory both by individual store and company wide

G. Input and manage customer sells.

H. Shipping

I. Track Shipping in real time

J. Manage customer information

K. Re-order inventory using Just In Time inventory



L. Track sales quantities and dollar amounts by sales associate.

M. Produce reports.

2. Conversion and Post-Conversion Support

A. Training to be provided for both staff and vendors.

B. Information System Vendor to provide 24-hour support.

BENEFITS

When this system is implemented, Gold Group Office Furniture will be able

to reduce inventory cost, reduce excess inventory, reduce inventory loss,

provide more efficient and effective customer service and provide better

tracking of costs and employee sales in real time.

Gold Group Office Furniture will have the capacity to accept larger orders

and obtain new and larger customers.

SOFTWARE COSTS AND PROFESSIONAL FEES

Feasibility Study & Planning phase to be outlined by March 20th, 2008

CLOSING

With G.I.I.T.S. Gold Group Office Supplies will be able to meet its future goals, and have the flexibility

to meet market demands and remain competitive in the global market place.

Feasibility StudyFeasibility Study

Executive Summary



Gold Group Office Supplies’ current system is fragmented due to aging

legacy systems that are unable to integrate with other internal and external

databases. This system has hindered the company’s capacity to serve its

growing customer base. A new system, Gold Inventory Information

Tracking System, also known as G.I.I.T.S. has been proposed as a system

that will enable real time tracking of inventory and sales by integrating our

internal systems and linking those systems with outside vendor’s tracking

information systems such as UPS to minimize Gold Groups development and

maintenance cost.

Gold Inventory Information Tracking system can be designed and

implemented within a six-month period at an estimated total cost of $29,590

or 1.47% of total revenue. Updates, maintenance and 24-hour customer

support will be supplied by Smart Systems Inc. for a monthly fee of $750.

It is the recommendation of the Gold Group Information Technology

Division that the Gold Inventory Information Tracking System be approved.

1. The challenges faced in implementing this plan are:

a. Designing user-friendly software, including appropriate data

inputs, fields, outputs and reports.

b. Transferring data from legacy systems into the new system.

c. Networking with vendor systems, including shipping suppliers.

d. Ensuring companies current work stations, personal computers

and lap tops meet hardware and software requirements and to

implement upgrades or replace them as necessary.



e. Training Gold Group Employees and Vendors.

f. Initial testing.

g. Implementation phases of G.I.I.T.S.

h. Maintain current level of customer service during

implementation of G.I.I.T.S.

2. Proposed System

a. Description of the System

The application should be web based to provide the best mobility

possible.

The application will be designed with a partnership with Smart Systems

Inc. to avoid development and maintenance cost.

The system is required to provide the following services:

Vendor Management

Purchase order generation

Track inventory/purchases in real time

Track orders and status

Track Receiving

Manage Inventory both by individual store and company wide

Input and manage customer sells.

Track Shipping in real time

Manage customer information

Re-order inventory using Just In Time inventory

Track sales quantities and dollar amounts by sales associate



3. Organizational Reports

G.I.I.T.S will have the capacity to produce reports that are invaluable at

every level of the corporation.

Inventory Reports – G.I.I.T.S will provide warehouse managers with the

information needed to track inventory, plan storage, manage staffing needs,

prevent losses and communicate with vendors and other company

departments in a more effective and efficient manner. Managers will have

the ability to locate and ship inventory to stores and ship to consumers as

needed.



Name: Inventory Report Type: Daily User: Buyer Type of Information:

OperationalProduct In Stock Re-Order AtChairs 2000 685Pens 8000 537Desks 3000 630Lamps 9000 706Note pads 4000 593Staples 10000 515Magnets 3600 491Caculators 8000 486Folders 4400 1046Printer Paper 5000 402

Sales Reports – Managers and executives will be able to access sales

reports on a daily basis. Sales reports outputs will be flexible to analysis

the performance of a single store or the company as a whole.

Name: Sales Report – Seattle Division Frequency: Monthly User:

Manager Type of information: Operational/Tactical

Year Ending 12/31/06Product Revenue Commission % Commision Paid

Chairs $523,132.00 1.50% $7,846.98

Pens $388,349.00 3.00% $11,650.47

Desks $393,452.00 1.50% $5,901.78

Lamps $2,282,400.00 3.00% $68,472.00

Note pads $371,933.00 2.00% $7,438.66

Staples $1,113,561.00 4.00% $44,542.44

Magnets $255,096.00 2.00% $5,101.92

Caculators $603,568.00 3.00% $18,107.04

Folders $1,720,388.00 2.50% $43,009.70

Printer Paper $402,880.00 3.50% $14,100.80

Sales Subtotal $8,054,759.00 Commision Subtotal $226,171.79



Trend Analysis – Executives will be able to view monthly reports to analysis

internal and market trends market trends.

Name: Market Analysis Frequency: Monthly User: CEO Type of

Information: Strategic Planning

Payroll – Department Managers and Human resources will be able to

produce commission reports on a monthly basis to assist in measuring

employee performance and compensation.

Name: Commissions Frequency: Monthly User: Store Managers/Human

Resources Type: Human Resources



Employee Display Name ID # 2007 CommisionsJoe Rios 38032 $13,882.75Charles Manatt 36222 $13,811.00Buzz Holtzman 32214 $13,427.00Hilda Solis 12353 $13,180.25Jessica Rodriguez 30998 $13,165.25Linda Devries 69326 $12,416.25Richard DuBois 74032 $12,254.75Mark Pryor 84387 $12,254.50Alfie Hamilton 37111 $11,993.50Ed Pastor 97957 $11,542.50Mike Thompson 93834 $11,686.00Howard Kline 14030 $11,528.50Jack Smith 58476 $10,930.50Samuel Forrest 34323 $10,930.50Dennis Cardoza 97387 $10,703.50Ramona Martinez 48326 $10,051.00Douglass Veneer 85433 $16,243.50Patty Higgins 48326 $10,051.00Joe Reed 21271 $9,376.75Regina Walker 48862 $8,957.00

4. Advantages and Disadvantages of the Proposed System

There are many strategic advantages of the proposed system. Gold Group

Office Supplies will be able to reduce inventory cost, reduce excess

inventory, reduce inventory loss, provide more efficient and effective

customer service and provide better tracking of costs and employee sales in

real time. Gold Group Office Supplies will have the capacity to accept

larger orders and obtain new and larger customers. G.I.I.T.S. bring positive

changes to the way company functions through reengineering of the

inventory system, bringing down company-wide cost and providing a

stronger competitive edge in the market place.

Some disadvantages while implementing the new system would include the

time it will take to properly train our staff on the new system, including

payment of overtime to maintain the current customer service level. Other

potential obstacles are the co-operation with vendor’s and shippers. To

counter act these obstacles, Gold Group will consult and contract with the

software developer Smart Systems Inc. Smart Systems is the major software

developer used by the majority of our vendors. Smart Systems is an expert

in web-based applications that integrate vendor, inventory, customer



service and tracking services and in addition offers continued maintenance

and 24-hour support. By using compatible systems with our vendors and

shippers, Gold Group will be able to help our stakeholders reduce their

costs and establish alliances and affiliate programs.

c. Software, Training and Administrative Costs.

SOFTWARE: G.I.I.T.S

SOFTWARE COSTS

Library Multi-Record Including Report Master $1565

General Ledger $750

Accounts Payable $980

Import Master $695

Total Software Cost $3990

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES COSTS

Hourly Fee $90

Total Estimated Hours 80

Total Professional Services Cost $7200.00

ITEMIZED TASK LIST AND ASSOCIATED HOURS

Task Hours

Installation Plan

1. Identify responsibilities

2. Establish schedule

3. Select conversion date

9



Installation of Software

1. Install G.I.I.T.S modules on network

2. Set terminal ID's and preferences

3. Set printers and defaults

4. Establish security

16

Implementation of Modules

1. Establish parameter and master files

2. GL, AP, and custom financial statements

9

Training: All Modules and Backup - 115 Employees & Vendors

1. Document Procedures

2. Demonstrate hands-on entry reporting

50

Total Employee Payroll & Vendor Training Cost $18,400.00

Conversion

1. Define conversion tasks and methods

9

Build Import from Outside Vendor’s & Shipping Companies 36

Coordinate Bridge to/from Gold Group, Smart Systems and vendors’ software.

1. Meet with neighborhood group to establish coordination specifications.

2. Meet with representatives from outside vendor’s and shippers to establish responsibilities

18

Total Hours 147

d. Space Requirements

G.I.I.T.S will be a web based application, maintained and serviced by Smart

Systems Inc. No additional space requirements are forecasted.

g. Computer Software Requirements



Technical Feasibility:

- All inventories will have an Electronic Product Code (EPC) tag, which

allow the system keep track of incoming and outgoing inventories as

widely used by our suppliers.

- Software requirements: Software to be developed in partnership with

Smart Systems Inc. Software Requirements includes MS Word,

Access, Excel and Dreamweaver.

- Hardware requirements: RFID EPC Tag Label Printers, RFID EPC

Readers and handheld RFID EPC Readers

Operation Feasibility:

- Parallel conversion will be applied in departmental increments.

5. Project Schedule



The technology division will be using various software components available

to it. Microsoft Excel, Access, Project and other components of Microsoft

Office to generate financial outputs, to design customers’ database to keep

track of their records and transactions. Dreamweaver will be used to design

the website interface. The department then links all these outputs so

reports will be available online for customers and vendors. Beta testing will

occur before any employee or vendor training and then tested again before

implementation.

6. Final Recommendation

The implementation of the new system G.I.I.T.S. will be able to be

implemented at a minimal one-time cost of 1.47 % of our current revenue,

and is expected to reduce future cost and increase operating income by



6.8% within the following year. With the partnership of Smart Systems Inc.,

the proposed system will require less labor, time and expense than

propriety software. It is the recommendation of the Gold Group Information

Technology Division that the Gold Inventory Information Tracking System

be approved.

Application DesignTables

Customer List Table: The customer list table lists all the customers by name and customer code, provide phone, and address information.

The Invoice List: Provides general information such as invoice number and the customer.

The Invoice Detail Table: The Invoice list provides the list of invoices by invoice number and provides the names of the customers, location, product order, and date of order, ship date, status, and total amount.

Sales Agent List Table: The Sales Agent’s table provides the name of the sales agent, the department they work in, the product name, product, title and description, total sales and invoice numbers. A separate table has also been made to store information for previous commissions earned.

Invoice Table: The Invoice table provides the details of each invoice with the customer and product information. It also provides the order shipping details and the sales agent’s information.

Product List Table: Provides a list of products, codes, limited description, price and the vendors.



Product Table: The product table shows detailed information about the product, such as the product code, vendor, price, tax, total cost and whether the item is in stock or needs to be ordered.

Warehouse Table: Provides information about products that are available in the warehouse, vendors, and orders, re-order levels and estimated time of arrival. Also provides information about freight shippers.

Vendor Detail Table: Provides detailed information about the vendor and contact information.

InputsInputs

Field Name Description Source Use

Address Location of Customers & Vendors Customer & Vendor

Communication, Billing, Shipping

Allocated Provides number of units products available to a particular division

Warehouse

Provides sales agents information whether a product is available for a customer now or will need to be ordered from warehouse.

AvailableShows whether a product is currently carried by a vendor Warehouse

Provides sales agent information if a product may be ordered from vendor

Category Shows type of merchandise such as furniture

WarehouseProvides Sales Agents, Managers and warehouse is sorting through products by type.

Cost Amount it cost the company to purchase a product from a vendor

Vender Used by accounting to calculate cost of goods sold

Department Section of store that products are sold, i.e. home furnishings.

Store Used by store and upper management to review profitability

ETA Estimated Time of Arrival Freight & ShippersUsed to estimate when the company and customers will receive a particular order



Invoice ID or # Invoice number Store Used to identify customer orders

In Stock Shows if an item is currently in the warehouse or store

Warehouse/StoreUsed to determine if an item is available to be sold or will need to be ordered

P.O. ID Purchase Orders: Record number of vendor orders

Vendor/Warehouse Used to identify purchase orders.

Phone Contact method that Customers and vendors may be reached

Customer & Vendor

Used to communicate with customers and vendors.

Price Selling price of product in stores, online or with customer service

MarketingDetermines amount required that customers must pay to purchase a product

Product Name Individual merchandise names, such as Bic Pens

Vendor Used to identify differing products

Product Code/ID

A numerical number or alpha numeric symbol

Vendor Used to identify differing products

Qty on OrderNumber of units purchased from vendors that has not yet been received by the warehouse

WarehouseUsed to identify how many units are waiting to be received by the warehouse from the vendor

Re-Order AtNumber of units remaining in the warehouse that indicates that a new purchase order must be made

WarehouseDetermines when inventory is below par levels and must be re-ordered

Sales Agent Name of employee that completed a customer order

StoreIdentifies employee who is responsible for sale and compensation

Sales Agent ID/Code

A numerical number or alpha numeric symbol

Store Used to identify Sales Agents

Selling Price Selling price of product in stores, online or with customer service

MarketingDetermines amount required that customers must pay to purchase a product

Shipper Vendor

Vendor used to ship merchandise to customer for order fulfillment

Vendor Used to identify shipping vendor

Status The current condition of an order Vendor/Shipper Used to identify if an order has been fulfilled

Tax Amount required to be paid to the state Store Used to fulfill legal requirements

Total Sales

Aggregated amount Individual Employee or daily/weekly/monthly/yearly store orders

Store Used by accounting

Tracking ID A numerical number or alpha numeric Freight & Shippers Used to identify current status of



symbol order fulfillmentVendor Name of supplier Vendor Used to identify suppliers

Vendor ID A numerical number or alpha numeric symbol

Warehouse Used to identify suppliers

Vendor's URL Vendor's web address Vendor Vendor's website to provide information and to sell products



Gold Group G.I.I.T.S Prototype



Copy of Excel Sheets to be inserted here.



Prototyping/Data DefinitionsExecutive Summary

This report is to introduce the partial prototype for G.I.I.T.S. The following

pages include two tables for the ‘Invoice Form, Invoice Status Report,

Invoice List, Customer List Form, Customer List Report by Area and the

Customer List’.

A mock list of 30 customers and 30 invoices were created for this report.

The Invoice Form is for sales agents to easily create new invoices. The

form in its final stage will automatically populate the invoice number filled

and will provide the agent with a guide to enter in the customer and

product information. The form will provide a choice of a selection of agents

and an option for the status of the invoice.

The Invoice Status Report provides a quick look of all the invoices

grouped by status of active, fulfilled or canceled and by date of invoice to

spotting lagging orders.

The Invoice List provides a quick look up of orders by invoice number or

by customer information.

The Customer List form provides an easy way either for agents to enter in

customer information or for customers to add themselves to our mailing list.

The Customer List Report by Area provides a breakdown of customers

by the city they live or shop in.



The Customer List is a quick way for agents to search for customer

information by multiple criteria.

For the final version, there will be additional Sales Agents Tables &

Reports, Vendor Table and Reports and Product Information Table and

Reports.

G.I.I.T.S will be able to create reports showing Sales Agent Revenue,

Vendor Information and status and a list of products in stock, and on order

and their status.

G.I.I.T.S. will also be able to track repeat customers, high purchasing

customers and track which areas produce high-ticket customers.

Project Summary

Currently we have finished the Design Phase of the project. We are excited

to proceed to the next phase, as we believe that we are ahead of the

planned schedule of implementing this system into our daily operations. The

next phase of this project is the vendor training, then warehouse training,

sales force, and finish with customer service.

After months of designing the G.I.I.T.S. we are proud to present and use the

state of the art system that is designed to include all of the departments of

our company, working well together, providing up to date reports, and real

data on the inventory, order status, vendor orders and status, invoices, and

customer database well incorporated into the system.



G.I.I.T.S. is a system that will speed up the work of our company, creating a

well designed mechanism that will only improve the work of various

departments, including the work of the sales force, warehouse,

administrative department, customer service, and vendor relations. The

system is easy to use and designed in a way that decreases the possibility of

making mistakes. This is important to us, as it will become helpful in

training our employees, vendors and customers on how to use the system.

We have successfully overcome most of the challenges that were described

in the feasibility study part of this report. The other challenges are still to

be approached as they concern the implementation phase of the project. We

look forward to the training phase of the project as that will show us in

practice the quirks and possible problems with the system. That will help us

solve possible difficulties before the system will be used fully on the daily

basis.

To conclude, I think Gold Group is a strong team of individuals that will

make the implementation of the G.I.I.T.S. a successful project. We cannot

forget to stay focused on implementing improvements to the system, as the

technology changes constantly, making it work even better and smoother.

We look forward to continue to work on designing and implementing the

system into our daily operations.

Dear Prof. Danner;

Below is the project summary.

Group Summary: By Dung Nguyen



Gold group members have performed their best for the project. Seth

Breedlove, group leader has contributed much of his time and effort to keep

everyone in the group on track. Thanks to the leadership of Seth, we were

able to complete the feasibility phase with high expectation. As group

members, Dung Nguyen and Agnieszka Patykowska have also spent a lot of

time to work along with Seth to bring the best into the project.

We have faced many difficulties. One of our first issues was communication.

Since, we all have different time schedule and many of us are working. It

was extremely difficult to set up a meeting. The project is time consuming

so we were all panic at one point. Thanks to Yahoo Messenger, we are able

to meet each other online. It is really convenient. We also put more effort to

email, phone call, and text one another.

The status of the group is five stars. No one is sick. Everyone is

participating. With the group leader’s guideline, all members won’t be panic

or frustrated at any point. We have completed the proposal and feasibility

phases. To stay front of everything, we also have discussed about planning

and prototyping phases. However, we are not able to continue without the

feedbacks of professor Danner. Since, our project is quite long and a bit

complicated. Overall, Group Gold has a strong leadership from Seth

Breedlove and high contributions from Dung Nguyen and Agnieszka

Patykowska.

Group Summary: By Seth Breedlove

I am very pleased with the outcome of the group project so far. The product

of this joint effort has been very professional and polished. At first, the

project got off to a very rough start, but with good team communication and

effort, we were able to pull together and produce excellent results. The

team communicates effectively and efficiently. Everyone provides feedback



and takes feedback well. All the team members possess a positive attitude,

have participated in the various aspects of the project, and have acted as a

cohesive group towards a common goal. One thing that was clear was that

everyone cared about this project. Extra kudo’s to Nisha who was very

professional and put in long over-night hours. I know everyone was over

loaded, and the emotional burden was amplified since it was a small amount

of people doing a larger portion. I would tell any future employer to hire

her.

Group Summary: By Agnieszka PatykowskaAs of 4/01/2008Considering the fact that we all have extremely busy schedules, which

contributes to the fact that we cannot meet on the regular basis at the same

time, we have managed to communicate well through e-mail, through the

group forum on iLearn, and by using Yahoo! Messenger, form time to time.

We all participate equally in the assigned projects, doing as much research

as it is possible to understand assigned tasks and jobs. We all split work on

the project, checking each others work, making sure there are no mistakes,

and other glitches. We all discuss assigned tasks in terms of some possible

difficulties, and how to solve them effectively.

We are currently on track with assigned projects, continuously working

together, putting a lot of effort to meet and exceed the requirements of the

project, staying on top of tasks. Seth is an excellent team member, he

exactly knows how to lead us and direct us by giving us priceless advice.

Working with Dung is quite successful as well.

As of 05/13/2008



After working for the entire semester with Seth and Dung, I feel that we

have accomplished a lot. We had many problems, just as any group would

have; our vibrant backgrounds, way of accomplishing assignments and way

of communicating were definitely the focus point and were causing most of

the problems. I have learned a lot about people from working with my team,

I have learned skills that are usually not taught in the textbooks. Although

sometimes I felt that I should have known how to solve problems, answer

various tasks asked of me to perform, I also believe that by taking this class

I don’t have to know all these skills, therefore I am taking this class, to

learn.

I think Seth is a great leader. Without him this project would fail or I would

have to step up to the role of the leader. Seth is very professional, very

intense person at times, but it taught me a valuable lesson. I really

appreciate the opportunity to work with Seth.

I had less interaction with Dung, but I feel that he is a good team member,

hard working.

ENCLOSURESPONSE

This Letter Correctly states the understanding of the Gold Group Information Technology Division

Accepted by: Title: Date: May, 14th 2008


gold group implemention phase & final report 363 sec_11_final draft

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