January 20th 2022, Release Note: RME | Menu Cycles: Default Tax for Each Tariff Type, Tax Edit Permission, Mass Update Prices v2

Summary

Select the release feature from the table below to be taken directly to that section of the release note.

Feature 1	Feature 2	Feature 3
Default Tax for Each Tariff Each Tariff type (aka 'sell price for a menu cycle item') will be linked to a 'default Tax %'.	Tax Edit Permission A new 'Edit Tax' permission has been created for Central and Local users.	Mass Update Prices, v2 Mass Update Prices, version 2, will allow Central users to update selling prices in Local menu cycles and within the selected Central menu cycle.

Release date for all features: January 20th 2022

 

Default Tax for Each Tariff

• Enabled by Default? - Yes
• Set up by customer Admin? - No
• Enable via Support ticket? - No, but any changes to default tax must be requested via a support ticket
• Affects configuration or data? - Yes
• Roles Affected: - Sell Price Managers

What's Changing?

Each Tariff Type (aka 'name of the sell price for a menu cycle item') will be linked to a 'default Tax %'.

When a Tariff Type is added in Planning or Mass Update Prices, the default Tax % will be displayed. 

Reason for the Change?

To increase the likelihood that the correct Tax % is associated with each Tariff Type.

Customers Affected

All Menu Cycles users.

Release Note Info/Steps

Tariff Type and default Tax % have been linked by the Menu Cycles engineering team according to each customer's requirements. There is currently no user interface to allow users to change this association. Any change requests should be submitted to the Fourth Support team via your organisation's head office.

Fig.1 - 'Add (Tariff) Type' button with an example of two different Tariff Types with two different default Tax % values

Existing Tariff Types (those that have already been added to a menu cycle item) are not included in this change.  Existing Tariffs (for existing menu cycle items) will continue to display the tax currently associated with the Tariff Type.

New Terms/Acronyms (optional)

Tariff Type is the name of the Tariff associated with each menu cycle item's selling price (not a new term, just a reminder). e.g. 'Student', 'Contractor', 'Staff, Visitor'.

 

Tax Edit Permission for Central and Local Users

• Enabled by Default? - No, disabled by default
• Set up by customer Admin? - Yes
• Enable via Support ticket? - No
• Affects configuration or data? - Yes, impacts user permission to change the tax associated with a Tariff Type
• Roles Affected: - Sell Price Managers

What's Changing?

A new 'Edit Tax' permission has been created for Central and Local users.  Users with permission to 'edit tax' will be able to change the Tax % for menu cycle items wherever Tariff Types are managed, e.g. in Planning and Mass Update Prices. 

Please note:  This permission will impact both Central and Local users. It will be disabled by default so users who can currently change the 'Tax %' value will find that they can no longer do so. The permission can be enabled for each user as required by each organisation's system administrator.

Reason for the Change?

To limit the number of users who can change 'Tax %' and in doing so, increase the likelihood that the correct tax will be associated with each Tariff Type. For organisations that integrate their menu cycle selling prices and tax with POS, the new permission will reduce the risk that the wrong tax will be charged.

Customers Affected

All Menu Cycles customers. 

Release Note Info/Steps

Central user permissions are enabled and disabled in Recipe and Menu Engineering user groups.

Fig.2 - Central user 'tax edit' permission is managed in Recipe and Menu Engineering user groups

Local user permissions are enabled and disabled in the Inventory solution.

Fig.3 - Local user 'tax edit' permission is managed in Inventory Roles

 

Mass Update Prices, Central User, v2

• Enabled by Default? - No
• Set up by customer Admin? - Yes
• Enable via Support ticket? - No
• Affects configuration or data? - No
• Roles Affected: - Central User 

What's Changing?

Mass Update Prices functionality has been extended to allow the 'bulk update' of recipe and buffet menu selling price information in Local menu cycles and, optionally, within the selected Central menu cycle. Central users with the required permission can access this functionality. Using a published menu cycle, Central users can update prices for selected menu cycle items at selected locations and within the Central menu cycle.

Local updates will not be limited to items from a specific menu cycle. All changed items (in Mass Update Prices) will be updated at the selected locations. If an item does not exist at one of the locations, nothing will happen at that location. Such a scenario does not impede updates at other locations where the item exists.

Reason for the Change?

To provide a mechanism for Central users to update Local prices which, in turn, helps contract catering customers to ensure the contracted selling prices are in operation at locations.

Customers Affected

Available to all Menu Cycle customers, optional to use.

Release Note Info/Steps

Permission

A permission must be enabled for Central users to be able to use the enhanced Mass Update Prices functionality. This permission is managed in Recipe and Menu Engineering (RME) user groups.

Fig.4 - Mass Update Prices, Central to Local, new menu cycle permission in RME

When the permission is enabled, a Central user can update Local menu cycle selling price information (e.g. Sell price for Fixed price model, Target % for GP/Markup price models, Tax %) for menu cycle items contained within published menu cycles.

Navigating to Mass Update Prices tab

• Once the user permission has been enabled in RME, log in as a Central user

Fig.5 - Log in as a Central user

• Select a published menu cycle from the list of Live Menu Cycles

Fig.6 - Selecting a published Menu Cycle from the Live tab

• Select Mass Update from the menu cycle header

Fig.7 - Select Mass Update tab in Menu Cycle header

Select Destinations

Immediately upon landing on the Mass Update, Update Prices screen, a 'Select Destinations' pop-up will be displayed. 

• Select the target destinations for which the changed pricing information should be applied

The destinations selected can include some or all of the destinations to which the selected menu cycle has been published. The 'Central Menu Cycle' can also be selected if the desire is that updated pricing information is 'saved' to the Central Menu Cycle as well as being transmitted to the target destinations.

Fig.8 - Select one or more destinations for the price updates

If Cancel is selected, the pop-up will disappear. For the Review and Apply button to be active, a destination (either Central menu cycle or destination(s), or both) must be selected and a change made. 

Fig.9 - Selected destinations can be changed by selecting this link

The Select Destinations link can be found in the upper left-side area of the 'Mass Update, Update Prices' screen. 

Fig.10 - One or more target destinations must be selected in order to progress to the 'Review & Apply' step.

• Changes to destination selection can be made until the Proceed option is selected (after selecting Apply on the 'Review' screen)

The pricing data for the changed menu cycle items will then be transmitted to the selected destinations. There is no 'undo' option but if a mistake is noticed after Proceed has been selected, the pricing information can be changed (corrected) by using the Mass Update Prices workflow to correct the error.

 

Fig.11 - Disabled 'Review & Apply' button

Fig.12 - After at least one destination is selected and at least one item's pricing information has been changed, 'Review & Apply' button will be enabled

Find Menu Cycle Items

To display the menu cycle items (contained within this particular menu cycle) on the 'Mass Update, Update Prices' screen, a keyword search or an 'empty search' can be initiated.

Fig.13 - An empty search will return all menu cycle items

A keyword search will search for matches on 'menu cycle item name'.

Fig.14 - Keyword search will return all menu cycle items with a name that matches the search term

Once search results are displayed, filters can be applied to further refine the list of items displayed. There are filters for both Item Type (recipe or buffet menu) and Tariff. The Item column can also be sorted alphabetically.

Fig.15 - Filters and column ordering are also available

Change Pricing Information

For existing tariffs (i.e. tariffs that exist in the selected Central menu cycle), these are the pricing-related values than can be changed on this screen:

1. Sell
2. Price (for tariffs that are 'fixed price model')
3. Target % (for tariffs that are 'GP' or 'Markup' models)
4. Tax % 
5. Effective Date

New Tariff Types can be added. Existing Tariff Types cannot be deleted. Newly added Tariffs can be deleted before they are ‘applied’ to the locations.

Please note:  Some or all of the price-related values listed above can be changed. If a Local destination is selected, the Effective Date must be populated. If only the 'Central Menu Cycle' is selected as the destination, the Effective Date is not relevant and cannot be populated.

Hint: This workflow can be used to apply both new and existing values to selected locations from a specified 'Effective Date'. For example, if the Current Sell Price is correct and the goal is to apply this sell price for all future dates at the selected locations, only the Effective Date value needs to be changed on the main 'Mass Update, Update Prices' screen. When such items are viewed on the 'Review' screen, the current Sell Price and Tax % values will be populated as the 'New Sell Price' / 'New Tax %' (respectively).

Fig.16 - Current Tax % and Current Sell Price on the main Mass Update, Update Prices screen with only 'Effective Date' populated

Fig.17 - On the 'Review' screen, when only 'Effective Date' has been changed, current Tax % and Sell Price values will populate the 'New' values 

• When ready to review and apply the changes to the selected menu cycle items, select Review & Apply

Only changed items will be displayed on the 'Review' screen, and any fields with 'invalid values' will be highlighted. All errors must be corrected in order for the Apply button to be enabled.

Fig. 18 - Examples of validation errors on the Review screen

Fig.19 - The 'Apply' button is enabled once all errors have been corrected

Fig.20 - Confirmation pop-up where user can 'Proceed' with or 'Cancel' the changes on the Review screen

Workflow Summary

Log in as Central User > select published Menu Cycle > select Mass Update tab > Mass Update, Update Prices screen > select Destinations pop-up > select destinations > Done

Search for menu cycle items > enter required changes > select Review & Apply > correct any errors > select Apply > Confirmation pop-up > select Proceed to apply changes / select Cancel to return to Review screen