# Order Operator — Quickstart

**One-line job:** turn accepted quotes into delivered goods.

## What you do

The customer said yes. You:

- Create the order from the quote.
- Order the goods from the supplier (a Purchase Order).
- Track them through collection, packing, and delivery.
- Hand off to invoicing once delivered.

You're the bridge between "they said yes" and "they have it".

## Your day

| Time | What to do |
|---|---|
| **08:00** | Open `/orders?tab=New`. Anything new from yesterday? Move it forward. |
| **08:30** | Open `/orders?tab=Processing`. Every line should have a PO. Flag any stuck > 1 day. |
| **12:00** | Glance at `/orders?tab=Collected`. Anything stuck in `stock_verified`? Investigate. |
| **17:00** | Anything you changed today — sanity check. Don't leave surprises for Monday. |

**Three times a day**, scan the dashboard. The order-trend chart
should show lines moving right (New → Processing → Collection →
Collected → Delivered). If anything's piling up in one tab, that's
where to focus.

## How to do the common stuff

### 1. Create an order from a quote

1. Open the quote (status `approved` or `emailed`).
2. Click **Create Order**. One new order, one row per quote line.
3. Order lands in **New** tab with everything `pending`.
4. The quote status does **not** change. Leave it alone.

### 2. Process a `pending` line

1. Open the order detail, click the line.
2. Set `cost_price` (from the quote) and `selling_price` (auto-derived
   from cost × markup).
3. Click **Mark Processed**. Status → `processed`.
4. Decide next: in stock? → **Book from Stock**. Not in stock? →
   **Generate PO** (next step).

### 3. Generate a Purchase Order (PO)

1. Click **Generate PO**. One PO per supplier.
2. Open the PO. Verify items, quantities, costs, delivery date.
3. Click **Send PO**. Same email modal as quotes — check recipient,
   attach any terms docs, hit send.
4. Status → `po_generated`. The order item waits for the supplier to
   reply / ship.

### 4. Receive a supplier invoice (when the email or paper arrives)

1. Find the PO number on the invoice (top right usually — "Your Ref").
2. The system will diff the invoice against the PO and tell you if
   it matches. **If it says "ready to receive"** → click **Confirm
   Receive**. Done.
3. **If it says anything else** (cost mismatch, qty mismatch, etc.) →
   **stop and ask the supervisor.** Don't force it.

### 5. Mark delivered (once the goods are with the customer)

1. Confirm the order has all its items in `delivered`. The header
   will show a green "Complete" badge.
2. Click **Mark Delivered** on the header. (Idempotent — safe to
   click twice.)
3. Then click **Mark Ready to Invoice**. Items flip to `ready_invoice`.
   The Invoicing Clerk takes it from here.

## Don'ts — the 3 things you must never do

1. **Never generate a PO without verifying the cost.** Once sent, it's
   the contract. Wrong cost = wrong margin.
2. **Never "force through" a receive diff that doesn't say
   `ready_to_receive`.** If the diff says cost mismatch, qty mismatch,
   supplier mismatch — call the supervisor. Don't bypass.
3. **Never mark an order delivered before every line is `delivered`.**
   Use the per-line `Mark Delivered` if needed. Don't bulk-flip the
   header to "make it look done".

## When to ask the supervisor (the 4 most common situations)

- **Supplier hasn't replied to a PO in 3+ working days.** Phone them
  first. If no answer after 2 attempts, escalate.
- **Customer wants to cancel after the PO is sent.** Depends on
  whether the supplier has confirmed / shipped. Call the supervisor —
  there are 3 options and they pick.
- **Supplier delivered the wrong / damaged goods.** Refuse at the
  supplier (if still there) or take photos at receipt. **Don't
  accept damaged goods silently.** The supervisor decides credit /
  return / write-off.
- **Stock item is short when you try to book.** Either the Stock
  Controller can re-check the count, or we source from the supplier
  instead. Phone, don't poke.

## How you're measured (the 2 numbers that matter)

1. **Order completion time** — target: **> 80% of orders delivered
   within 5 working days** of the order being created. (From "yes" to
   "they have it".)
2. **PO stale rate** — target: **< 5% of open POs** without a supplier
   reply for > 3 working days. (Catch the silent ones early.)

Bonus number the supervisor watches: **PO cost-mismatch rate** —
target < 3% of receives. If yours is higher, your cost entries are
probably sloppy.

## Who to ask

- **Anything about a specific order, a PO, a customer, a supplier**
  → supervisor.
- **Anything broken in the system** → supervisor.
- **Anything you're not sure about** → supervisor. Better to ask
  than guess.