The Alaska branch of Far Distributing Company has substantial annual sales, which are billed and collected locally. Its procedures for handling cash receipts are as follows:

1. Cash collections on over-the-counter sales are received from customers by the sales associates. On receipt of cash, the sales associate prepares a two-part sales receipt and stamps it "paid." The original is given back to the customer and the second copy is forwarded to Internal Audit. At the end of the day the cash is delivered to the cashier.

2. A mail room clerk opens the mail on a daily basis. From the cash receipts and accompanying remittance advices, the clerk prepares an electronic remittance list. A copy of the remittance list is printed and attached to the cash receipts and remittance advices received and then forwarded to the cashier.

3. Near the end of the day, the cashierkeys all receipts of cash to create a cash receipts file and prints a two-part bank deposit slip. The cash and deposit slips are taken to the bank. Copy #2 is validated by the bank and forwarded to Internal Audit by the cashier. In addition, the cashier files the remittance list by date and then forwards the remittance advices to Accounts Receivable.

4. Accounts Receivable reconciles the remittance list to the remittance advices and makes the appropriate entries in the electronic accounts receivable subsidiary ledger. Then the remittance advices are filed by customer.

Instructions:

1. Flowcharting Assignment: Use Excel to draw an analytical flowchart based on the narrative above.

a. Your flowchart must be formatted and printed so that it fits on one page using landscape for the page orientation. Adjust margins to .25 if necessary.

b. Each symbol must be white filled, contain an appropriate label, and appear like the shape illustrated. Use a font size no smaller than 9 point.

c. All shapes must be equivalent in size with the exception of the on-page connector and manual file symbols.

d. Only horizontal and vertical lines or a combination of both may be used to represent the flowlines that connect the shapes in your diagram. All flow lines must include appropriately pointing arrowheads.

e. Your diagram must have a professional appearance similar to the illustrations in the textbook to receive a score above 70%. Any diagram that is judged to be less than a good faith attempt (repeated use of incorrect shapes, repeated rule violations, failure to follow instructions, etc.) will receive a score of zero.

Hints:
- Use on-page connectors to forward documents to other departments. Three pairs of on-page connectors are required.
- My flowchart uses 47 shapes.

2. Data Flow Diagram Assignment: Also using Excel, now create a Data Flow Diagram for the same problem. Data flows must be drawn consistent with the illustrations in Chapter 3 of the Romney and Steinbart text. That means only straight lines and arcs may be used. A single data flow line may not consist of both vertical and horizontal lines. Diagonal lines are allowed. All data flows must be labeled. Again your diagram must have a professional appearance to receive a score above 70% (i.e., criteria e., above applies).

Hints:

- The diagram requires 14 shapes at a minimum (five are process symbols, 4 are source destination symbols, and 5 are data stores).

3. How to submit your assignments. Print a copy of your completed diagrams and submit them at class time on the due date in your homework folder. Remember I have old eyes. I must be able to read the labels within each symbol. Also make sure your name is on your assignments.

4. Academic Integrity: File sharing is not allowed. While you may consult each other for help, you must draw your own diagrams.

Supplemental Guidelines for Preparing System Flowcharts

1. Frequently the same person or the same machine performs a sequence of elementary operations. If these operations are performed with the same set of inputs and outputs, they can be consolidated into one operation and represented by a single symbol (i.e., Match and post; match and approve.)

2. Flow lines should not cross each other.

3. The decision symbol (diamond) is a program flowcharting symbol and should NOT be used in a system flowchart.

4. Use an arrow head to positively identify the direction of an information flow. When an off-line or on-line file is used in an operation:
a. An arrow head directed to the operation means RETRIEVAL or query of information.
b. An arrow head directed to the file means ADDING information to the file.
c. UPDATING a file requires an arrow head in each direction.

5. When an operation involves retrieving information from or updating the record of an off-line file, a document symbol between the off-line file and the operation should NOT be shown.

6. When a document is taken out of an off-line file and used in succeeding operations, it should be shown between the off-line file and the operation where the document is taken out.

7. When a new document is filed in an off-line file, it should be indicated between the off-line file and the operation.

8. All input documents used in any operation must be traced to the locations where they are finally disposed. There are three main ways to dispose documents:
a. To send them to other systems or subsystems.
b. To send them to other parts of the flowchart.
c. To file them in off-line files. In the last case, show how long the files are kept unless they are master files kept semi-permanently.

9. Avoid the occurrence of loops whenever possible. A loop violates the sequential nature of a system flowchart. If it cannot be avoided then use a broken line.

10. Depicting sorting operations. When a sorting operation separates documents into groups according to a certain rule, all groups created should be clearly identified and shown on separate flow lines.