Overstock Problems in a Purchase-to-Pay Process: An Object-Centric Process Mining Case Study

Dina Kretzschmann, Gyunam Park, Alessandro Berti, Wil M. P. van der Aalst

Abstract: This paper addresses overstock issues in a real-life Purchase-to-Pay process in cooperation with the industry leader in pet retail in Europe. It highlights the development of solutions for more efficient inventory management, thereby reducing overstock. Our approach involves identifying patterns leading to overstock and proposing specific improvement measures within the existing logistics systems. This includes technical modifications in the order suggestion and purchase order processes using Logomate and SAP systems. The research utilizes object-centric process mining techniques as a crucial tool to uncover these patterns, with a focus on the practical solutions derived for overstock reduction. The case study conducted with the PM\(^2\) methodology demonstrates potential benefits in optimizing inventory structure and suggests a path for future research in generalizing these findings across various sectors and automating overstock pattern detection.