BYU Student Author: @Jimmy_Han
Reviewers: @Jacob_Dutton, @Dallin_Gardner
Estimated Time to Solve: 20 Minutes
We provide the solution to this challenge using:
- PowerBI (You may need to update to the latest version of power bi to complete this challenge)
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Overview
As the newly appointed process analyst at a management consulting firm, your first task is to examine the Accounts Payable operations at Cougar’s Collectible Chronicles. The client has requested a thorough evaluation of their Accounts Payable cycle to pinpoint any weaknesses and enhance their procedures. Your job is to check for bottlenecks in the process, investigate whether the company relies excessively on a few vendors, and assess the frequency and size of their orders. Your aim is to provide insights and recommendations that will help Cougar’s Collectible Chronicles improve their efficiency and reduce financial risks.
Instructions
- All the visualizations for this challenge have already been prepared in the PowerBI file (You’re welcome!). Feel free to download the Challenge193_Data.pbix file to solve this challenge.
- Please answer the following questions:
a. In the same industry, purchase orders are normally issued 7 hours after requisitions are made and approvals typically occur 6 hours later. Given this information, was there a bottleneck in the company’s AP process? Refer to Suggestions and Hints if you got stuck.
b1. What are the five most purchased inventory items? Provide all related inventory IDs.
b2. Of the five most purchased inventory items, are any predominantly supplied by a single vendor? If so, provide all relevant inventory IDs.
c. Reviewing the activity with vendor ID #1007, the company placed nine separate orders for the same inventory item within three months. What suggestions would you have for this company? (This is an open-ended question)
Data Files
Suggestions and Hints
In Variant Explorer, you’ll find a Process Map. Check the KPI box located between each activity; it displays the throughput time between two activities.
Solution
a. For Cougar’s Collectible Chronicles, it typically takes 19 hours to move from Purchase Order Requisition to Purchase Order, which is significantly longer than the industry average of just 7 hours.
b1. Inventory IDs: #203, #127, #67, #164, #191.
b2. Inventory IDs: #203, #127.
c. Ordering the same inventory item too frequently from the same vendor can lead to increased shipping costs due to multiple, smaller shipments rather than consolidating orders into fewer, larger shipments. Therefore, we recommend ordering inventory items in bulk to reduce the number of shipments.
Solution Video: Challenge 193|POWERBI – Cougar’s Collectible Process Efficiency Adventure