Report on the Utility of Accounting Software at Woolworths Supermarket

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the utility of accounting software at Woolworths, a major Australian supermarket chain. It begins with an overview of Woolworths' organizational structure, identifies existing problems, and examines its system acquisition method, which includes the use of an ERP model and SAP system. The report includes a system flowchart of the sales procedure and discusses control problems and potential fraud within the system. It then delves into the development and adoption of accounting software packages, specifically the B2B model, and assesses the company's market size and competitive landscape. The report identifies challenges faced by accounting software users and offers recommendations for improvement, including the potential integration of B2C models. The conclusion emphasizes the importance of accounting software for organizational improvement, providing insights into sales processes and facilitating necessary modifications for further development. References to key sources are also provided.

Running head: UTILITY OF ACCOUNTING SOFTWARE AT WOOLWORTHS
Utility of Accounting Software at Woolworths
Name of the Student:
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The report is made in the light of Woolworths Limited, a supermarket chain based in Sydney,
Australia. The report provides an overview of the company along with its current
organisational structure. The purpose of the report is to project the organisational flaws and
the system acquisition method of the company. A system flowchart related to its sales
procedure is provided and explained. The control problems are identified and a brief
overview on possible frauds is provided. The report also summarises the development and
adoption of the accounting software packages by the company. The current market size is
determined and the leaders in the Australian market are identified along with their
competitive advantages. Finally, the current challenges faced by the accounting software
users are identified and possible recommendations are provided.

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Table of Contents
1. Introduction............................................................................................................................3
2. About Woolworths Supermarket............................................................................................3
2.1. Existing Organisational Structure of Woolworths..........................................................3
2.2. Problems in the Organisation..........................................................................................5
2.3. System acquisition method of the Company...................................................................6
2.4. Sales procedure system flowchart of Woolworths..........................................................7
2.5. Control Problems in the System......................................................................................8
3. Development and Adoption of Accounting Software Package at Woolworths.....................9
3.1. The Market Size of Woolworths Limited.......................................................................9
3.2. Leaders in the Market and their competitive advantage...............................................11
3.3. Present Challenges of Accounting Software Users.......................................................11
3.4. Recommendations.........................................................................................................11
4. Conclusion............................................................................................................................12
5. References............................................................................................................................13

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1. Introduction
Accounting Software is described as a type of application or program that records and
processes transactions related to accounts within functional components such as payroll,
accounts payable, general ledger, accounts receivable and trial balance. It acts as an
Information System for accounting purpose. The report introduces the effect that
implementation of one or more accounting software has on an organisation. To explain the
fact provided above, a complete analysis of Woolworths Supermarket, a retail market chain
based in Sydney, Australia, is provided in the report. The organisational structure and the
effect of implementation of accounting software in the organisation will help in explaining
the role, which accounting software plays in an organisational functionality.
2. About Woolworths Supermarket
Woolworths Supermarkets is a Sydney based Australian supermarket chain by
Woolworths Limited. The company has expertise mostly in selling grocery products such as
packaged food, fruit, vegetables, meat and such. They also have other merchandise as
stationery items, magazines and DVDs. The current business asset of Woolworths is 1000
stores all over Australia, which includes 968 Supermarkets and extra 19 convenience stores
using their logo (Woolworths.com.au 2017).
2.1. Existing Organisational Structure of Woolworths
The two figures provided below show the existing organisational structure of
Woolworths at both corporate level and management level. The structure shows that a group
of non-executive director and the chairperson forms the top level in the management
hierarchy of the company.

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Figure 1: Organisational Structure of Woolworths Supermarket at Corporate Level
Source: (Woolworths.com.au 2017)

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Figure 2: Organisational Structure of Woolworths at Management Level
Source: (Woolworths.com.au 2017)
2.2. Problems in the Organisation
The organisation has faced many alterations in the market share for years. Rapid
changes in the market structure have rendered the strategies adopted by the company useless.
The increase in competitors in the market has placed greater challenges for the company
(Galliers and Leidner 2014). The organisation failed to cope up with the increasing demands
of its customers. This has caused a decline in the market share of the company largely. The
hike in the price of the products that the company sell has also led to the loss of consumers.
The higher management of the company plays a vital role in the decline of the situation of the
company, as they are not aware of the predicament the company is undergoing. The mission
and vision strategy adopted by the company are also not suitable for the existing market
situation. The marketing department of the company is responsible for the propaganda of the

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company and its products. Poor quality of advertisement catered by the department has led to
the loss of customers for the company (Peppard and Ward 2016).
Figure 3: Sales statistics of Woolworth Supermarket
Source: (Peppard and Ward 2016)
2.3. System acquisition method of the Company
Woolworths Limited has adopted the ERP model as a system acquisition method. The
company uses SAP system for the merchandising purpose but it created a lot of problem for
the company at the initial stage of implementation. However, the company soon fixed the
error and implemented a new and more stable version of SAP system (Pearlson, Saunders and

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Galletta 2016). The advanced ERP system has allowed the company to initiate a better
relationship with the customers.
2.4. Sales procedure system flowchart of Woolworths
A system flowchart related to sales process helps an organisation to analyse and
assess the drawbacks of the company regarding the sales process it has undertaken and allows
to find a solution to eradicate such errors (Coviello and Tanev 2017). The figure provided
below shows the system flowchart of sales process for Woolworths Supermarket. In the
flowchart, it is shown that a customer places an order online, which is processed and
forwarded by the portal (Cassidy 2016). The order is accepted, reviewed and processed for
delivery by a concerned executive of the company. In case there are any issues related to
terms and conditions on the ordered product, the executive seeks confirmation from the
consumer. The customer completes the payment for the ordered product via the online
transaction system. The customer is liable to cancel the order at any stage of the transaction.
In that case, the order is cancelled and the payment is refunded. In normal scenario, the
ordered product is transported to the retailer nearest to the customer from where it is sent to
the address of the customer (Nguyen, Nguyen and Bosch 2017).

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Figure 4: Sales Procedure System Flowchart of Woolworths
Source: (Nguyen, Nguyen and Bosch 2017)
2.5. Control Problems in the System
The organisational structure and its mode of operation have affected the market
condition of the same (Wu et al. 2015). The business operations of the company were
influenced by the external factors, inclusive of environmental factors. The control problems
that have affected the market integrity of the company are structure of service process, issues
related to forecasting and management of supply chain. Various kinds of frauds can happen

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in the system. The product that has been delivered by the company as per the order of the
customer can be tampered while delivering from to its destination. Fake or wrong
advertisements can lead to misunderstanding between the company and its customers.
3. Development and Adoption of Accounting Software Package at Woolworths
The company has adopted the B2B model as the accounting software package for the
improvement of the drawbacks in the company procedure (Appelbaum et al. 2017). The B2B
model has helped the company to establish a proper link with the brands that the company
sells. The B2B model provides a group of third party technology providers that aids in
resolving the loopholes of the company in the market. Therefore, it is evident that the B2B
model is providing the necessary help that is required by the company to rectify its errors and
for which it is adopted (Cassidy 2016).
3.1. The Market Size of Woolworths Limited
Despite the challenges faced by the company regarding its failed strategies, problem
during adoption of the accounting software package and competitors in the market,
Woolworths have always somehow managed to stay at the top of the sales chart and tried to
maintain a steady improvement in its field of expertise. The following figures provided below
shows the current market size of the company in comparison to other organisations of the
same competency.

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Figure 5: Market growth statistics of Woolworths
Source: (Cassidy 2016)
Figure 6: Comparison of Market Share of Woolworths with its competitors.

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Source: (McKnight et al. 2017)
Although the company had a steady growth in the market in the past, however, the company
has seen steady decline in the recent years, which has led to a total loss of 825 million dollar
in September 2016 in the market (Sun et al. 2017).
3.2. Leaders in the Market and their competitive advantage
Woolworths, Coles and Aldi are the top dominant players in the Australian market.
Each of the company has adopted different competitive strategies to gain advantage against
its competitors in the market. For example, Coles provide a wider range of trendy products to
its customers that have a higher price range, which has allowed it to gain a competitive
advantage. Woolworths have invested a lot of money in lowering the price range of its
products that acts as a competitive advantage in the market for attracting more customers
(McKnight et al. 2017).
3.3. Present Challenges of Accounting Software Users
The Woolworth have used B2C model of accounting in the past that has aided in its
downfall rather than improving it. The implementation of the B2B accounting model has
allowed the company to maintain a stable flow of technical information of the brands the
company sells. The company needs to keep updating the accounting software in relevance to
the current market condition and its demands (Hallikainen et al. 2017).
3.4. Recommendations
It is recommended that, to maintain a top position in the market, Woolworths should
implement the B2C model along with the B2B model. This is because, a business to customer
communication is equally necessary to understand the demands of the clients as the need to
communicate with other business brands. The implementation of both B2B as well as B2C