Project A

Student Name and ID

This example for Project A takes the Case Study pages 263-266 of the book as a basis.

1. System components

1.1. WSF elements for the whole process (Complete Travel Agency Operations)

Product/Service: private trip schedule and tickets/vouchers package, business trip schedule and tickets/vouchers package, combined private and business trip schedule and tickets/vouchers package.

Process: private trip, business trip, combined private and business trip, financial payments.

Participants: customers, travel agency (dedicated private trip employee, business trip full-time employee, business trip part-time employee), finance department (employee, director), on-campus bank office (teller), central office of Somewhere Else travel agency (employee).

Information: customer details and trip requirements, travel permit (business trips), internal memo (business trip permission - Finance Dept to Travel Agency), flight details and costs, conference registration fee (if applicable), hotel accommodation details and costs (if applicable), local transportation details and costs (if applicable), business trip cash and travel cheque details, advance payment declaration, Faculty/Unit Budget (travel costs).

Technology: telephones, fax, 3 desktop computers (assumed).

Infrastructure: public telephone network, university's internal telephone network, Internet, university database, banking systems, flight booking systems (external), accommodation, local transport, etc booking systems (external) - assumed.

Context: SU Board policies regarding travel and payment, booking and payment policies attached to external booking systems, competitive marketplace (flights, accommodation and local transportation) - assumed.

1.2. WSF elements for the Private Trip Process

Customers: private trip.

Product/Service: private trip schedule and tickets/vouchers package.

Process Private Trip: register private customer, start private trip process, prepare proposal, call customer for approval, check private trip, determine cost of flights, call client, make advanced payments, pay registration fees (if applicable), check flight payments, customer payment , pay for flights, book accommodation & local transportation (if applicable, send payment, print vouchers), check private trip paid for , check all bookings complete, print Tickets, make up travel folder, advise customer travel folder to be collected.

Participants: customer, travel agency (dedicated private trip employee), central Office of Somewhere Else travel agency (employee).

Information: customer details and trip requirements, flight details and costs, conference registration fee (if applicable), hotel accommodation details and costs (if applicable), local transportation details and costs (if applicable).

Technology: telephones, fax, 3 Desktop computers (note this is only focused on the Travel Agency).

Infrastructure: public telephone network, university's internal telephone network, Internet, university database, flight booking systems (external), accommodation, local transport, etc booking systems - assumed.

Context: SU Board policies re travel and payment, booking and payment policies attached to external booking systems, competitive marketplace (flights, accommodation and local transportation) - assumed.

2. Resources

First, construct a table that identifies the Resource Task and Resources available for the whole process (similar to Figure 3.5 page 82 of the book).

Resource Class	Resources (Names are assumed)
Travel Agency Employee	Jim
	Fred (dedicated private travel)
	Jane (Part-time 3 days)
Central Office of Somewhere Else travel agency - Employee	Jill
Finance Department - Employee	Don
Finance Department - Director	Sue
On-campus Bank Office - Teller	Penny

Task	Role	Organisational Unit
Register private customer	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Start private trip process	-	-
Prepare proposal	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Call customer for approval	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Check private trip	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Determine cost of flights	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Call client	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Make advanced payments	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Pay registration fees (if applicable)	Employee	Finance Department
Check flight payments	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Customer payment	-	-
Pay for flights	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Book accommodation & local transportation (if applicable	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Send payment	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Print vouchers	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Check private trip paid for	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Check all bookings complete	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel)
Print Tickets	Employee	Central Office of Somewhere Else travel agency
Make up travel folder	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel
Advise customer to collect travel folder	Employee	Travel Agency (private travel
End of private trip process	-	-

Resource Classification Diagram (the notation of my summary should be used instead)

3. Concerns of the user, client and management

Client

Delays caused by the travel permit processing. Not aware permit is required. Not completed correctly. Time taken in getting permit correct delays trip organisation.

The permit having to travel back and forward between the Travel Agency and the client.

Delays in gaining Finance Department approval. Eligibility to take SU funded trips.Time taken to get advance payment lodgement after Finance Dept approval for travel.

Having a mix of Travel Agency and personal involvement in getting cash and travel cheques when the travel is a mix of business (SU funded) and private funds.

Confusion about the requirements of the declaration acquitting cash and travel cheques made in advance once the actual trip has been undertaken.

Confusion about the involvement of 3 elements (Departments) - Travel Agency, Finance Department, and the on-campus Bank - in the travel request.

User

Duplication of entering client registration details to meet the requirement of a separate file for each trip.

Time taken to organise a trip and have it complete 3 days prior to departure.

Disparate distribution of workload between the 2.6 employees employed by the Travel Agency:

20% of trips are Private trips with 1 employee (38.5%) organising these trips.

80% of trips are Business trips with 1.6 employees (61.5%) organising these trips.

A trip comprising business and private components involves having two employees looking after it (and possibly three depending on the employee specialisation) and requires a Private Trip Case Manager and a Business Trip Case Manager to complete their own separate components.

Delays in gaining Finance Department approval. Eligibility to take SU funded trips. Time taken to get advance payment lodgement after Finance Dept approval for travel.

Duplication of business travel approval process with the Finance Department. Approval triggered by the travel permit submission to undertake SU business trips. Then the Travel Agency has to prepare detailed pricing information to enable approval and payment of flights and registration fees (if applicable).

Having to pass physical files and documents between the Travel Agency and Finance Department.

Having a mix of Travel Agency involvement and personal involvement in getting cash and travel cheques when the travel is a mix of business (SU funded) and private funds.

Poor coordination between the SU elements involved

Management

Time taken to organise a trip.

Time taken to process the financial settlement (cash and travel cheques declaration) after the trip is completed.

Process is taking too long due to poor coordination between the elements involved.

The potential for fraud based on that if the finance acquittal declaration is not received within a month of the trip completion then it is assumed that the actual cost equals the monies advanced.

4. Critical Success Factors

Factor	Measures	WSF Principle
Process a travel request within 24 working hours	Average time taken to process a request Customer satisfaction with the time taken The responses time taken by infrastructure. User satisfaction with system support and	Please the customer. Perform the work efficiently. Deploy infrastructure as a genuine resource.
Simplify travel permits and their approval process	Percentage of permits requiring further details Average time to have permit approved	Serve the participants. Perform the work efficiently.
Establish direct electronic links between the elements	Elimination of the need for physical file and document movement	Deploy infrastructure as a genuine resource. Create value from information.
Redesign the workflow between the Finance Department and the Travel Agency so that all financial payments are made direct to the airlines, conferences, accommodation, etc by the Finance Department	No financial payments made by the Travel Agency Average time taken to make payment following notification of costs by the Travel Agency. Average time taken for the Travel Agency to receive the cash and travel cheque advance from the Bank	Serve the participants. Perform the work efficiently.
Automate the follow up of the client's declaration	Percentage of clients who have to be reminded to submit their declaration.	Minimise unintended conflicts and risks. Perform the work efficiently.

5. Petri-net

A Petri net of the whole process is in page 341 of the book (the notation I introduced in my document about PIPE and Woflan should be used instead).