Analyse
At the moment, Joe, as I have mentioned earlier, uses a manual system to record all the data about the company’s expenditures. During the month, Joe records the records of sales and orders (including bills paid) onto several forms and at the end of that month, those details are entered onto one from and stored in a file. At the moment, the forms look a bit like this, only the data is not entered with a computer:
A typical form when data is entered in during the month for the bills he pays.
A typical form when data is entered in during the month for items he sells.
The details from these two forms are then entered into a different form at the end of each month, Into a cash-flow, which is in fact for one year, only, that particular months details are entered into one column, as shown on the next page…
I feel that there is little wrong with this system, and so does Joe, but as I have said previously, our main aim is to save time.
I feel that we should keep roughly the same system, but seeing as Joe really wants to do an accounting system for the business (meaning a cash flow). Joe doesn’t have a computer at work, and also doesn’t see the need for one. I feel that we can make a cash flow for Joe without a computer at work, and seeing as this is him main aim, we don’t see anything wrong with it.
I will therefore need to construct a cash flow for Joe, which can be filled in every month, immensely reducing the time he spends doing this now.
My System
My system will therefore work like this when Joe buys or pays for something:
- This is the simplest, but probably most time consuming job in the process. Basically, Joe collects all the receipts he gets when he buys or pays for something.
- At the end of the month, he adds up all the totals on those receipts, and enters it into the cash flow, keeping certain prices separate, like Water, Electricity, wages and Gas. He will mainly add up all the prices of the stock he buys.
My system will therefore work like this when Joe’s shop sells something:
- This is the also simplest, but probably most time consuming job in the process. Basically, Joe collects all the receipts he gets when he buys or pays for something.
- At the end of the month, he adds up all the totals on those receipts, and enters it into the cash flow.
The two methods are nearly identical, seeing as all the data ends up in a Cash flow, this doesn’t really matter.
Input, Process, Output
Design
Spreadsheet Designs
I have made my designs for the spreadsheet after consulting with my end user. It looks the same as the original table he drew up by hand, because we felt that this was a good way of storing the information, and I said that this will work equally as well on a computer, with all the extra benefits I discussed earlier.
Formulae
Formulae can help me do multiple calculations that would take a very long time if you were to do it with a calculator. I will need to be able to work out percentage, and the sum of certain numbers. I will also quite possibly need more then this, but I will note those at a later stage.
Test Plan
The only real test plan I need here, is to check whether or not the formulae actually work. For this I have designed a table to fill in at a later stage
Feedback
I will then need to get feedback from my end user. For this, I will ask Joe to write me a letter concerning his feelings about my designs
Implementation Plan
Finally, I have designed an implementation plan, stating what I need to achieve at the end of this project
Test Plan
To make sure all the formulae in my spreadsheet works, I will need to carry out some tests on them. I will carry out the following tests for all the formulae
Here is the method I will use to test and see if all my formulae works:
Seeing as the formulae I enter into some cells will depend on the contents of certain other cells, that must mean that if the contents of that cell changes, the result of the cell in which the formulae it entered should also change. This is because a cell may have formulae in to add up a number of cells. Therefore, if the content in one of those cells decreases by one, so should the cell with the formulae.
Therefore, my testing procedure should seem quite obvious. I will simply alter the data in a number of cells and see how it affects the cells it should
That would mean that if I was to increase the amount I’m spending by one, anywhere in the “Cash Out” section, the yearly cash flow should then decrease by one, but the “Total Cash out” should increase by one.
To test this properly, I will select 2 cells at random, 1 from the Cash In section, and 1 from the Cash Out section, and fill in the table below, after changing the values of those cells. All data should be accurate up to the end of March.
Implementation Plan
In Order to create my final Spreadsheet, I will need to…
- Set up a suitable spreadsheet relating to my designs.
- Use appropriate formulae in appropriate cells to help save time for me and Mr. Scott
- Carry out some sort of test procedure for my spreadsheet. This will include filling in the table I designed previously
- Get Feedback from my end user. As well as a letter concerning the designs of the spreadsheet, I will also need a letter after implementing my designs
Implement
Spreadsheet Printouts
To show that I have actually completed my spreadsheet, I will print out the spreadsheet on a single page, which are enclosed in this section. I have made notes on the spreadsheet, to show how they have followed my design, and there are no cases where it hasn’t. Key features such as formulae and bold text have also been labelled
Testing of Formulae
I have also completed the table I designed in the design section of this project for all my formulae, and have annotated where I have entered formulae on my printout
End User Feedback
I have obtained feedback from Mr. Scott by means of a letter. After reading the letter, I feel that there is no need for change in my presentation
Final Printouts of Presentation
I have then also printed out the final spreadsheet (accurate up to March) without any notes on.
Test Plan
To test this, I have selected 2 cells at random, 1 from the Cash In section, and 1 from the Cash Out section, and filled in the table below, after changing the values of those cells. All data should be accurate up to the end of March. I will also provide printouts of before and after the change took place, showing the actual values
Evaluation
I have fully designed and implemented a spreadsheet for Mr. Joe Scott for his company, Scott Sports.
My spreadsheet has several strong and weak points. I consider the following strong points in my spreadsheet.
- The spreadsheet contains data of both the money he is receiving, and the money he is spending.
- The spreadsheet contains formulae. This allows calculations to be done quickly and easily. It also accommodates for changes. If a change is made in the cost (earlier), it will also affect the net cash flow, among other totals
- Seeing as the spreadsheet contains a lot of formulae, it will save Joe a tremendous amount of time, seeing as he does not have to spend time with a calculator, working out different individual calculations
- The spreadsheet is done monthly, meaning that Joe will only have to enter data once a month, saving him a lot of time.
My Spreadsheet is not perfect, and also contains some bad points. Although to this I must add, that these points are not actually serious at all, and does not affect the performance of my spreadsheet.
- It is not very presentable. It does not contain colour or any edited buttons.
Have I met all the objectives I have set?
As you can see, I have met all the objectives I set earlier. This means that very little can be wrong with my spreadsheet.
At the end of this project, my end user did not suggest any changes to me, and therefore I feel that the making of this presentation was a big success.
