The order process at Desko is based on several activities and procedures.

These
include customer service, credit, production, distribution, shipping and invoicing. The
company needs to focus on designing and restructuring the business flow and process of
the company.
The pillar of customer service for Desko is the ERP system. This system helps
process the customer information like the customers account number, order number,
receipt date and product order. The basic purpose of ERP is to collect, store, manage, and
interpret data from many business activities, including manufacturing, production,
costing, inventory management and shipping. The problem with the ERP is not
satisfactory for the company, as the managers sometimes need to carry out product
reservations manually. This leads to more human error. The ERP errors relating to the
customer service department include errors such as errors in prices, product code,
delivery address and purchase order duplication. Due to these errors, the entire order
process suffers because of the inefficiency of the system.
The ERP system currently installed at Desko is inefficient for order related
activities as it supports only a maximum of two delivery points per customer. The process
for credit is based on the checking the creditworthiness of the clients. With the ERP
system, failed ordered are blocked and checked by the clerk. In the credit process,
collection of debts and dues are included. These specify the orders the need to be
collected. The company replaces items that dont meet the customers requirements are
replaced by the company, but to do so, they require the creation of a second invoice.
However, the process of the collection of replaced orders is flawed. This is because it is
dependent on the favorable routes of the company, which in turn, increases the time. An
error in ERP will occur as the replaced order may appear on the list of past dues and often
generates unjustified requests.
Production of the company is also controlled by ERP and based on the make-tostock method (MTS) and a manufacturing process (MTO). The MTS method forecasts
demand to determine how much stock should be produced. This strategy can be efficient,
if the demand can be accurately forecasted. However, for Desko, MTS manufacturing has
many problems relating to the inability of the system to accept major changes. In
addition, there is a lack of consistency in using the software since the planners are using
different software for forecasts in sales. MTO is a manufacturing process in which
manufacturing starts only after a customers order is received. Using this process means
using a pull-type supply operation since the manufacturing is performed when the
demand is confirmed, i.e. being pulled by the demand. However, the distribution for the
American and Canadian customers is different. The Canadian customers have to bear a
transportation cost wait for the cost to be equal to ten percent of the actual cost. This wait
can create delays in order processing. This can make customers frustrated and lead to
order cancellation.
In distribution and shipping, the team supervisor is unable to cancel the order.
Instead, the order process stays open and there are often delays in informing the customer
that the product is not available. This creates frustration for the customers and results in
customer switching to another supplier, and thus, the company losing both revenue and
their customer base. In addition, the warehouse clerk and he distribution partner do not

work harmoniously together. This can create confusion and creates unnecessary errors.
This can cause items to be distributed and shipped to the wrong customers.