Problem
Develop a swimlane process map for the online ordering process for Active Bicycle Company, shown below. Each of the following functions should be one swimlane: sales, accounting, warehouse, and shipping.
A. The process begins when a customer submits an online order form to Active Bicycle via the Web. The customer supplies his or her name, address, email address, model number of the bicycle they desire, and credit card number.
B. When the customer clicks on the Confirm button on the Web page, Active Bicycle's system gets approval for the transaction from the credit card company. If the credit charge is approved, the system assigns a number to the sales order, displays an order summary for the customer to print, and sends a confirmation email to the customer. If the credit charge is denied, the customer is asked to provide a different form of payment.
C. The system then generates a two-part invoice, a stock release form, and a two-part packing slip form. The stock release form is sent to the Warehouse Department, and the two-part packing slip and one copy of the invoice are sent to the Shipping Department. The other copy of the invoice is maintained in a holding file in the Accounting Department to be filed later with the shipping certificate.
D. In the warehouse, employees use the stock release form to pull the appropriate inventory to fill the order. Assuming there is enough stock (for the purposes of this exercise you can assume there is enough stock), the bicycle is packed into a special box for shipping, with added protection so it will not be damaged in transit. Using the stock release form, the warehouse staff inputs data into the inventory management program to update the master inventory file. The warehouse clerk also must take the information from the stock release form and manually fill out a shipping certificate, which is sent to the Accounting Department for further check that the items are being released from the warehouse. The boxed inventory, along with the packing slip, is then sent to the Shipping Department.
E. In the Shipping Department, one copy of the two-part packing slip is placed in the shipping department file cabinet, and one is included with the goods to be sent to the customer.
F. Back in the Accounting Department, the shipping certificate is matched with the copy of the invoice, and the accounting database is updated to record the completion of the order. The accounting program then submits a payment request to the credit card company, and both the shipping certificate and the invoice are filed in the accounting office.