Introduction to Strategic Analysis of Options

This strategic analysis of options aims to highlight the systemic issues faced in sales reporting and their cascading effects on payroll, commission, compensation, and customer invoicing at Cox Communications. As one employee, I have experienced the reality of these errors firsthand during my initial months of sales production. Starting from my 16th day of selling, I encountered and reported these issues to the best of my ability. The challenges encountered with the STAR report—where discrepancies in data have impacted financial outcomes—underscore a broader pattern of operational inefficiencies and delays. These issues began with the persistent technical problems involving my work computer, which required intervention from eight different technicians and over 50 trouble tickets over a 90-day period. Promises to replace the malfunctioning computer were not fulfilled, and the recurring issues with slow and often inoperable internet service (the very product we were tasked to sell) reflect a troubling consistency in how operational challenges are managed.

This document will introduce and detail specific data discrepancies, their direct impact on performance metrics, and how they contribute to payroll inaccuracies. The introduction of HTML-based verification against database summaries has revealed substantial variances, providing clear evidence of the issues within the current reporting systems. The following table and subsequent analysis aim to bring these issues to the forefront for resolution.

Specific Issues with Sales and Revenue Reporting

• Transfer Negative Posting Error: Instances where negative revenue of the "MOVEFROM" address was posted to the STAR report against the salesperson, without corresponding positive revenue from the "MOVETO" address.
• Missing Sales Revenue: High-value orders vanishing or being unreported, despite showing success in ICE and other systems.
• Sales Not Included in Monthly Revenue: Sales made and billed correctly but not reflected in the month's sales revenue, impacting my efforts significantly. For instance, in May alone, 46 sales worth $6,227.02 were not included in the STAR report.
• Incorrect and Underreported Sale Revenue: Sales recorded in STAR at significantly lower amounts compared to ICE orders, customer biller, and ICOMS.
• Untracked Spanning Sales: Sales spanning two months not correctly credited, resulting in revenue reports that do not match the customer’s billing.
• Unnoted Account Reassignment: Accounts sold and recorded under one salesperson being reassigned without notation, causing inconsistencies in sales reporting.
• Misassigned Negative Sales: Negative sales amounts being incorrectly assigned to salespeople, often new hires.
• Partial Product Reporting: Only part of the revenue from multi-product sales being recorded, often omitting significant portions of the sale.

Summary of Additional Findings from May 2024