This presentation provides a complete picture of the underlying skeletal structure that holds every supermarket business together while achieving it goals. The supermarket model introduces a comprehensive framework for managing the complexity of a supermarket structure, and a reusable blueprint for visualizing how a supermarket company actually does business. The model’s clearly-defined core-processes and their functions provide a powerful baseline for improving business performance. By viewing a supermarket business as a single functional system, the nature of its underlying core processes become clear. Then by managing and improving them as parts of a single system, substantial improvements can be made on critical success factors, such as lead-time requirements and the precise availability of stock when needed, throughout the supply chain.

1. A Complete Model of the
Supermarket Business

2. Supermarket Model
Introduction
Why this presentation?
• Development of the ‘Supermarket Model’ by Dave Ackley and
Frank Steeneken.
• Publication of the model at www.bptrends.com January 3th
2012, in the article ‘A Complete Model of the Supermarket
Business’.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 2

3. Supermarket Model
Introduction
What is the Supermarket Model?
• A complete picture of the underlying skeletal system structure
that holds every supermarket business together while
achieving its goals.
• A comprehensive framework for managing the complexity of a
supermarket structure, and a reusable blueprint for visualizing
how a supermarket company actually does business.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 3

4. Supermarket Model
Introduction
Dave Ackley:
• Founder of Ackley Associates, an Oregon (USA) consulting firm
specializing in advanced modeling methods.
• He has almost 40 years' experience in business and systems
analysis, method development and process improvement.
• During that time he consulted with over 50 major
corporations on enterprise modeling, information systems
planning and process reengineering.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 4

5. Supermarket Model
Introduction
Frank Steeneken:
• Business Process Architect working in the Netherlands.
• Frank has 27 years of experience in the field of business
process architecture, business process management,
requirements engineering and system analysis. He has worked
for consulting organizations across different industry verticals
and has extensive experience with supermarket process
modeling.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 5

6. Supermarket Model
Introduction
Developed with the Integrated Modeling Method
www.ackley.com:
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 6

7. Supermarket Model
Introduction
Integrated Modeling Method:
• This method makes it easy to model the complex structure of a business
enterprise, based on the discovery that: every Business Enterprise has the
same Inherent System Structure.
• Instead of asking what are the essential characteristics of one business,
this method begins with the basic system architecture that is common to
every business.
• Structural details are then tailored to represent the unique characteristics
of the particular business enterprise that is being modeled.
• This approach is many times faster than traditional modeling methods, yet
produces a more complete, accurate, and useful model of the entire
business enterprise.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 7

8. Supermarket Model
Introduction
Agenda:
• Some theory.
• Scope and focus.
• Overall structure.
• Detailed structure.
• Useability.
• Summary.
• Feedback.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 8

9. Supermarket Model
Some theory
Systems thinking approach:
• The process of understanding how things influence one
another within a whole.
• Based on the belief that the component parts of a system can
best be understood in the context of relationships with each
other and with other systems, rather than in isolation.
Source: Wikipedia
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 9

10. Supermarket Model
Some theory
Most systems share common characteristics, including:
• Systems have structure, defined by components/elements
and their composition.
• Systems have behavior, which involves inputs, processing and
outputs of material, energy, information, or data.
• Systems have interconnectivity: the various parts of a system
have functional as well as structural relationships to each
other.
• Systems may have some functions or groups of functions.
Source: Wikipedia
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 10

11. Supermarket Model
Some theory
(Core)process:
• Processes are chains of activities. These activities are logically
organized and aimed at achieving results for a ‘customer’.
Business
Customers
Suppliers
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 11

12. Supermarket Model
Some theory
Business Function:
• A contribution (black box), to the purpose of a process.
• Relatively stable, independent of a specific technology.
Business
Customers
Suppliers
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 12

13. Supermarket Model
Some theory
Decomposition:
• The overall sequential flow of work performed by each core
process determines the flow of work as it encounters its
sequence of business functions.
• In that context, the work performed by a given business
function is viewed as a sub-process of the overall core
process, and details of the work within the business function
appear as lower-level activities within that sub-process.
• The core process dimension breaks down into a set of sub-
processes that defines the sequence of work steps.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 13

14. Supermarket Model
Scope and focus
What is a business?
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 14

15. Supermarket Model
Overall structure
What is a supermarket business?
• Function:
A supermarket exists in a competitive environment, where it acts as a
value-added intermediary between geographically dispersed supplier
companies and the scattered individual customers who eventually buy
their products.
• Product/service:
A supermarket is a business enterprise that provides a service. It does
not produce a physical product of its own in the usual sense. Instead, it
adds value by acquiring existing products from remotely-located
suppliers, assembling them in regional warehouses, distributing them to
local stores, and finally selling the supplier’s products to local customers.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 15

16. Supermarket Model
Scope and focus
What is a supermarket business (continued)?
• A supermarket business enterprise is a large, very complex
structure, involving many component entities:
– An array of repeat customers grouped in various local areas.
– A chain of retail stores.
– Various transportation systems.
– A set of warehouse distribution centers.
– An array of product suppliers under contract.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 16

17. Supermarket Model
Overall structure
Business Concept:
• A balanced composition of the marketing mix such that it
creates a distinctive image for the customer of a store.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 17

18. Supermarket Model
Overall structure
How is Supermarket Model structured?
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 18

19. Supermarket Model
Overall structure
How is Supermarket Model structured (continued)?
• Four core processes, which represent the life-cycle* of a
supermarket business:
1. Defining.
2. Designing.
3. Constructing.
4. Provisioning.
*a change in the business concept reincarnates the life cycle.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 19

20. Supermarket Model
Overall structure
How is Supermarket Model structured (continued)?
To fulfill the original business
concept, the four core
processes are implemented
over time. This four-stage
development sequence
comprises the life-cycle of the
supermarket’s business
enterprise product.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 20

21. Supermarket Model
Detailed structure
A more detailed subsystem
structure is required as a basis
for defining the core process
structures. The first task is to
translate the Functional
Activities to be Performed into
the sequence of Basic
Functional Steps that bring
product stock from remote
suppliers to local customers.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 21

22. Supermarket Model
Detailed structure
Interpret the Basic
Functional Steps as business
subsystems, which portray
the supply chain in terms of
business structural
requirements.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 22

23. Supermarket Model
Detailed structure When the detailed subsystems and core
processes are combined, they produce a
grid-like framework. Within this framework,
each subsystem/core process intersection is
interpreted as a Business Function to be
managed and performed.
The core process dimension breaks down
into a set of sub-processes that defines the
sequence of work steps to be conducted in
this portion of the supply chain. The
subsystem dimension defines how resources
and schedules are applied to accomplish
that work.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 23

24. Supermarket Model
Detailed structure
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25. Supermarket Model
Detailed structure
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26. Supermarket Model
Detailed structure
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27. Supermarket Model
Detailed structure
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28. Supermarket Model
Detailed structure
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29. Supermarket Model
Useability
The purpose of this supermarket model is to clearly portray how
the work performed in a supermarket business is structured,
apart from the way it is managed and controlled. To provide this
clarity, feedback loops and control systems are not shown on
these diagrams

30. Supermarket Model
Useability
Efficient tool for more accurate business process
identification, improvement and design.
Chain
0
Core process
1
Process
2
Activitty
3
4 Task
Workflow
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 30

31. Supermarket Model
Useabilty
A basis for (re)designing organizational structure.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 31

32. Supermarket Model
Summary
The Supermarket Model:
• An application of the Integrated Modeling Method.
• The supermarket model defines the inherent system structure that is
common to every supermarket business.
• Provides an architectural framework of function and workflow that can be
applied to better understand and improve a supermarket’s business
performance.
• By identifying the supermarket’s complete core process and function
structure, this model provides a highly efficient tool for more accurate
business process identification, improvement and design.
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 32

33. Supermarket Model
Feedback?
• Frank.Steeneken@Gmail.com
9-12-2012 Copyright © 2012 Frank Steeneken and Dave Ackley All Rights Reserved 33