What Should I Do After Initial Setup?
Overview:
When your Initial System Setup is completed and you have received your login credentials from COGS-Well support, you are ready to receive training. You can also start using inventory control and recipe costing features right away.
Training:
Sign Up for Training Classes: If you haven't signed up already, then after your Initial Setup is complete, you should click this link to see a review of our training classes and to sign up for our Online Classroom Training.
Watch the System Navigation Training Video: After receiving your COGS-Well system login credentials, we would like you to click this link to watch our short, but important training video on System Navigation. This video explains how to navigate through the menus in COGS-Well and how to use special tools to make navigation easier.
Training Videos: If you want to watch training videos after receiving your COGS-Well system login credentials, you can click this link to start watching Training Videos.
Help and Learning Center: The COGS-Well Help and Learning Center contains hundreds of articles (one for every feature, report, or worksheet in our software as well as special topic articles such as Getting Started, Frequently Asked Questions, Training Videos, and Tips and Tricks.
Context-Sensitive Help: There is also context-sensitive help on every screen that will display articles related to the screen display you are on.
Review your Database:
Our Setup team will set up your Inventory Departments and Categories based on your Chart of Accounts (GL Accounts). If you did not provide us with a Chart of Accounts, then we set up our standard departments and categories (which can be easily modified). If you are an Ottimate (Plate IQ) user, then we import your chart of accounts from Ottimate.
Inventory Categories: This article on Departments and Categories provides more detail on the purpose of these features. This article includes information on how to view or modify Inventory Categories. You can also share any questions with your trainer or support@cogs-well.com.
Review Inventory Items: After receiving your COGS-Well system login credentials, you should review your inventory items to make sure they are in the proper categories and that pack sizes, count units, and recipe units are correct.
Please also review the count status for items to make sure that items you want to count are not flagged as "count never" items (or items that you don't want to count are flagged as count never).
We will have audited your inventory items as part of your setup process, but our auditors are not as intimate with your inventory as you are. You can print the Inventory Count Worksheet to see how your items will show up for your inventory count entry. The Mass Edit Inventory Items feature will display all items in a grid and the count status can be modified.
Review Sales Items: When your POS interface is complete, you should review your Sales Items and Recipe and Sales Categories. COGS-Well imports Sales Items, Sales Categories, and Retail Prices for Sales Items from your POS system and automatically adds them to your database. The Sales Items and Categories will match the setup in your POS. A good report to use to audit your sales items is the Sales Mix Report.
Added Features That You Can Set Up:
Add Users: COGS-Well support will have added the System Administrator Users that were included in your service agreement. Any system administrator can add additional users. This video on Setting Up Users will teach you how. Or, you can read this article on Setting Up New Users.
Set Up Storage Locations: If you have a large inventory, storage locations can make it easier and faster to record inventory counts. This video shows how to Set Up Storage Locations and this video shows how to Assign Items to Storage Locations. Or you can attend our online Inventory Counts class to learn how to set up Storage Locations.
Request Exports to Accounting: COGS-Well can export invoices (with images) to your accounts payable system and inventory extensions or adjustments to your general ledger in credit/debit balance. These features can automate your accounts payable process, save time, and increase accuracy. Please click this link to learn more about our Accounting Integration.
Please notify our support or implementation team if you would like to use COGS-Well's accounting integration.
Set Up Transfers: If you have multiple locations or a commissary and you transfer inventory between locations, COGS has great features for requesting, fulfilling, and approving transfers. This article on Transfer Options - FAQs should be helpful if you want to learn more about transfers. There are also training videos for Transfers.
Set Up Combined Items: If you plan to build recipes then Combined Items should be set up when a single ingredient is purchased from more than one vendor (or from the same vendor in two different pack sizes).
This article on Combined Item - FAQs should be helpful if you want to learn more about combined items. Training for combined items is included in the Recipe Setup online class and this Training Video on Combined Items Setup.
Features You Can Use and Benefit From Right Away:
Benefit Right Away: This article on how to Obtain Benefits Quickly and Easily reviews what features you can use immediately to start enjoying benefits from your COGS-Well system.
Explore Other Features: There are other COGS-Well features and options that you can start implementing immediately after your Initial System Setup is complete. If you are interested then please view this article on Other COGS-Well Features and Benefits.
Summary:
When your Initial System Setup is complete, you should sign up for training, watch the System Navigation training video, and review your starting database. You can optionally, start setting up Storage locations, Combined Items, Recipe Items, and Transfers.
We believe job #1 in COGS-Well is to scan invoices, regularly enter inventory counts, integrate with your accounting system, and create recipes for some or all of your Prepared and Sales Items. These 4 basic processes can reduce your costs as a percentage of sales from 3 to 5 percent.
Monitoring your inventory costs and usage, knowing your actual Cost of Goods Sold (COGS), and determining if your menu items are priced effectively, are critical to reducing costs. These 4 basic processes will also save time (versus manually), increase insight, and improve accuracy.
If you have questions or other needs, please don't hesitate to reach out to suppor@cogs-well.com or log in to our Help and Learning Center.