SD WORK FLOW SCENARIOS I

Processing Credit Memo Requests (SD-SLS-RE)

Purpose

Credit memo requests normally need to be checked by the employee who entered them as well as approved by an additional decision-maker. The value of the credit memo determines who is able to approve it.

Once a credit memo request is created, the system normally creates a billing block. This block prevents you from billing the credit memo request and can only be removed by an authorized employee.

Using the workflow, you can represent the whole business process, with all the people involved, for approving credit memo requests within your company. This enables you to process credit memo requests simply and efficiently. If you do not use the workflow, the system does not control the process flow so you will have to organize the steps in credit memo processing yourself.


If the value of a credit memo request is below a minimum value, the system
automatically releases it for billing by removing the billing block.
If the credit memo request exceeds a certain value, the system automatically informs the employee responsible. She or he receives a work item in their inbox and can process it directly from there.
The employee responsible can cancel, release, or process a credit memo request.
If the employee cancels the request, the system automatically creates a reason for rejection in the credit memo request and ends processing.
If the employee releases the request, the system automatically removes the billing block in the
credit memo request and releases it for billing.
If the employee processes the request, she or he can use all the functions available in the change transaction.
The people informed by the workflow do not need to know either the name of the transaction or the menu path of the transactions involved.

Prerequisites

You have configured the settings in Customizing for the workflow and created an
organizational plan (see Preparation and Customizing (SD-SLS-RE) [Page 17]).

When you create credit memo requests, the system normally sets a billing block, which prevents it from being billed. Only authorized employees may remove this billing block, thus releasing the document for billing. The person who is able to check the credit memo before releasing it depends on the value of the credit memo.
You create the billing block for credit memo requests in Customizing for Sales and
Distribution when you define the order type (Sales and Distribution __Sales __Sales
Documents_ Sales Document Header _ Define sales document types).

When using the workflow for processing credit memo requests, we recommend that you
should only allow the billing block to be removed by the people who are authorized to
release credit memos of any value.


Process Flow

Depending on the value of the credit memo request, the system runs through one of the following processes when you enter a credit memo request:

If the value of the credit memo request is smaller or equal to a certain limit (L1), the system automatically releases the credit memo request. The system removes the
billing block in the background, releasing the credit memo request for billing.
If the value of the credit memo request is between limit L1 and limit L2, or equal to L2, the job responsible is informed that the credit memo request should be checked. All the people assigned to this job receive a work item in their integrated inbox, where they can cancel, release or process the credit memo request.

Cancel credit memo request

The employee has to enter a reason for rejection. The system automatically transfers
the reason for rejection into the credit memo request and stops processing.

Release credit memo request
The system automatically removes the billing block in the credit memo request and
releases the document for billing.

Process credit memo request

Here, the user branches into the “Change sales order” transaction, where they can
use all the functions in this transaction. According to the user’s authorization, he or she can remove a billing block, enter a reason for rejection, or process individual items (for example, delete or add order items, or change the order quantity).

The system checks whether the billing block was removed manually. If there is a
billing block, the system re-checks the value of credit memo request and informs the
employee responsible. This process is repeated until the credit memo request has
either been rejected or released.