article thumbnail

Inventory Discrepancy: What It Means & How to Avoid It

Ship Monk

If you want to strike fear into the heart of an ecommerce business owner, say the words, “inventory discrepancy.” Unfortunately, inventory discrepancies are a common occurrence in many ecommerce businesses and fulfillment warehouses. (We What is an Inventory Discrepancy?

article thumbnail

Types of Ecommerce Inventory from Beginning to Ending

Ship Monk

Inventory” is a tricky word because it means different things to different people. If you are an inventory manager, inventory is the number of units you have on hand at any given time. Inventory Types for Manufacturers. Inventory Types for Ecommerce Businesses.

Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Inventory Management vs. Warehouse Management

The Logistics of Logistics

Inventory Management vs. Warehouse Management. Original article: Inventory Management vs. Warehouse Management. That may be because a company might already have an inventory system and wonders what additional capabilities they will get with a new WMS.

Inventory 273
article thumbnail

Inventory is Everything with Jeff Flowers

The Logistics of Logistics

Jeff Flowers and Joe Lynch discuss why inventory is everything. Key Takeaways: Inventory is Everything. In the podcast interview, Jeff explains the importance of effective inventory management to supply chains. Learn More About Inventory is Everything.

Inventory 259
article thumbnail

Elevate Your Supply Chain Resilience With Scenario Planning

Speaker: Robert Olszak- Vice President, Global Supply Chain Optimization, RGP

Join Robert Olszak, Vice President at Global Supply Chain Optimization, as he discusses how to better prepare for the next generation of supply chain management with industry-leading inventory and network optimization tools.

article thumbnail

Inventory Management in a High Inflation Environment

Logistics Viewpoints

Inflation’s effects on inventory management policies are likely far from top of the mind of Logistics Viewpoints readers in today’s challenging times. However, today’s elevated rate of inflation warrants a closer look at optimal inventory policies. Inventory Costs and Risks.

Inventory 167
article thumbnail

How to Calculate Beginning Inventory and Why You Should Track It

Ship Monk

There are a lot of accounting terms thrown around when describing eCommerce inventory: merchandise inventory , WIP inventory , ending inventory , and beginning inventory to name just a few. What is Beginning Inventory? however often you’re counting inventory.

article thumbnail

How to Calculate Ending Inventory

Ship Monk

Do you know how to calculate ending inventory? This simple calculation tells you the status of your end-of-period inventory. Knowing how to calculate ending inventory and continually monitoring it is critical for growing your business and maintaining profitability.

article thumbnail

Beware the Swinging Pendulum on Supply Chain Inventory Practices

Logistics Viewpoints

Supply shortages resulting in empty shelves or parking lots of WIP inventory represent a spectre causing supply chain leaders to reconsider supply chain inventory practices. Opinion of just-in-time (JIT) as a practice has taken a battering and inventory is rising.

Inventory 186
article thumbnail

How Much Inventory Should I Have In My Fulfillment Warehouse?

Amware Logistics and Fulfillment

Inventory management has changed substantially in the last few years. Most fulfillment professionals spent years learning about lean inventory strategies, only to find those methods ineffective when the supply chain turned volatile during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Inventory 239
article thumbnail

How Does Your Inventory Optimization Process Compare to Peers?

The 15-question assessment takes only 5 minutes to complete. Take it now to see how your inventory optimization process scores and benchmark it against peers. Responses are aggregated and kept anonymous. We hope it serves as a thought-provoking exercise to improve your approach!

article thumbnail

Perpetual Inventory System

Ship Monk

Perpetual inventory. Well, a perpetual inventory system does constantly monitor the flow of products in and out of your warehouse, but there’s a bit more to managing the inventory than that. What is a Perpetual Inventory System? Perpetual Inventory vs. Periodic Inventory.

article thumbnail

Merchandise Inventory Tracking and Accounting

Ship Monk

Any company that sells a product carries merchandise inventory with costs that need to be tracked. Since inventory is considered a current asset, its value must be calculated on a regular basis and reported in financial statements at the end of the year. What is Merchandise Inventory?

article thumbnail

Options for inventory planning and forecasting

SYSPRO Smarter ERP

In an increasingly unpredictable world environment, practices for planning and forecasting inventory levels that worked in the past need to be reviewed. In the 1990s, APS (Advanced Planning and Scheduling) arose as a solution for making better decisions about inventory.

article thumbnail

9 Barriers to Optimal Inventory and How to Break them Down

Logistics Bureau

Too much inventory in your distribution network? Inventory costs too high? These are all pervasive issues for supply chain operators worldwide—and are classic symptoms of suboptimal inventory performance. Inventory Optimisation: A Clarification.

Inventory 110
article thumbnail

5 Powerful Prescriptive Analytics Examples in Supply Chain

Prescriptive analytics is a type of advanced analytics that optimizes decision-making by providing a recommended action. Supply chain, with its complex planning questions, is typically an area where optimization technology is required. Read about 5 use cases.

article thumbnail

What is Work in Process Inventory (WIP)?

Ship Monk

Any eCommerce business that manufactures goods has three different types of inventory at any given time: Raw Materials Inventory , Work in Process Inventory , and Finished Goods Inventory. When Does Inventory Become WIP Inventory?

article thumbnail

FIFO Inventory Management vs. Inventory Valuation for eCommerce Businesses

Ship Monk

If you manage inventory, you’re familiar with the term FIFO, an acronym that stands for First In, First Out. FIFO is the most common inventory management method for eCommerce businesses because selling the oldest units before the newer units helps ensure a consistent turnover of inventory.

article thumbnail

Inflation in 2022: Is the Bullwhip Effect to Blame for Retail Inventory Glut

Logistics Viewpoints

I did a little digging to find out the specifics about excess inventory, the stated causes, and the potential implications. Retailers’ Inventories – Just Keep your Returns? Unfortunately, I am unsure about the order of magnitude or the duration of these inventory mismatches.

Inventory 166
article thumbnail

A Concise Guide to Inventory KPIs for Your Business

Logistics Bureau

As we are often asked about KPIs for inventory management , that’s what we’re going to focus on in this particular post. You will also understand their notable benefits to the inventory management discipline. 10 Invaluable KPIs to Track Inventory Management Performance.

article thumbnail

Complimentary Gartner Report: Improve S&OP Decision Making with Scenario Planning

Traditionally, planning teams have aimed for one number, one plan. But with uncertainty on the rise, they need to build more flexibility into their process to account for changing business conditions. It’s time to shift gears and embrace variability with different scenarios.

article thumbnail

Inventory Optimisation: How Much Stock is Right for Your Company?

Logistics Bureau

Among the universal challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has imposed upon the supply chain management profession is the question of inventory, specifically, “how much is enough?”. It wasn’t long ago that businesses were asking, “By how much can I reduce my levels of inventory?”.

Inventory 118
article thumbnail

Inventory is a ‘high risk’ for retailers: Morgan Stanley

Supply Chain and Logistics

A study by Morgan Stanley consultants indicates that there is way too much inventory in retail outlets. That means that inventory needs to be liquidated by these firms, and also that they … Continue reading → Logistics Supply Chains inventory ocean shipping transportation trucking warehousingThey believe it’s an overshoot of almost 20%.

Inventory 100
article thumbnail

Managing inventory with ERP amid disruptions

SYSPRO Smarter ERP

In today’s business world, the success of a firm depends not only on its sales but also on the ability to manage its supply network and ensure it has the inventory it needs to deliver customer orders. In the past 18 months, many companies have increased their inventory levels.

ERP 90
article thumbnail

7 Reasons to Outsource Inventory Fulfillment to a 3PL

Ship Monk

Outsourcing inventory and order fulfillment to an experienced 3PL is the natural next step for a growing business. And anyway, wouldn’t it just make your life so much easier if the place you kept your inventory actually, you know, shipped it out when orders come in?

article thumbnail

Just In: Inventory Optimization Research

How are organizations performing on inventory optimization? How can new technologies help your team improve? Find out in this new research report.

article thumbnail

Deborah Dull on Inventory Thinking and How to Improve It

Logistics Bureau

Having published two of the interviews already in the last few weeks, I’ve gone ahead and written up the final one for you, in which Deborah talks about some key things that supply chain professionals get wrong when dealing with inventory. Every single thing you see is inventory.

article thumbnail

Re-imagining inventory management for a new normal

SYSPRO Smarter ERP

Inventory management was moving towards a just-in-time approach until the supply disruptions of the last year. Why inventory management is important. Active inventory management is a major contributor to manufacturing success. Inventory in the supply chain process.

Inventory 109
article thumbnail

4 Easy Steps to Inventory Improvement

Logistics Bureau

Effective inventory management can be a constant struggle for most organizations. So here is a simple 4 step process to check your inventory health and improve it! A Concise Guide to Inventory KPIs for Your Business. 3 Common Inventory Management ‘Sins’—And How to Avoid Them.

article thumbnail

Warehouse Inventory Management Techniques to Increase Productivity

Cyzerg

Warehouse inventory optimization is a concern for every warehouse. In this article, we will discuss the importance and benefits of warehouse inventory management and some techniques to help increase productivity.

Inventory 230
article thumbnail

How to Tackle Today's Most Complex Inventory Challenges

Speaker: Andrew Kurpiel - AmerCareRoyal | Bill Benton - GAINS | Paul Benhamou - Benco Dental

Join three supply chain experts as they share their best practices and effective strategies for facing today’s most complex inventory challenges.

article thumbnail

Editor’s Choice: It’s time for traditional inventory management to evolve!

Logistics Viewpoints

This article is from Zheyuan Du at Kinaxis and discusses unconventional solutions to excess inventory challenges. As a result, inventory managers have to explore new ways to cope with full warehouses. Unconventional solutions to excess inventory challenges.

Inventory 123
article thumbnail

Inventory Management’s Crucial Role in the Supply Chain

Kuebix

What is Inventory Management and Why is it Important? Inventory management refers to the process of ordering, storing and using a company’s goods or materials. Ineffective management can result in excess inventory which runs the risk […].

Inventory 137
article thumbnail

Inventory – the Next Normal

Logistics Business Magazine

A new survey suggests that a single view of inventory is becoming increasingly important in retail logistics. Single view of inventory. 74% of surveyed retailers provide shop assistants with handheld devices that show a consolidated view of inventory across the network. •

article thumbnail

Leveraging the power of ERP to optimize inventory management

SYSPRO Smarter ERP

Manufacturers and distributors can optimize their inventory management using some of the latest emerging technologies, including machine learning, data analytics, artificial intelligence, and cloud computing. Where to start with inventory management? .

article thumbnail

Automated Order Processing and Proactive Inventory Management

Speaker: Irina Rosca, Director of Supply Chain Operations, Helix

Organizations need to focus on demand driven supply planning, utilizing real time information on customer orders from all marketplaces (e-commence, Amazon - or other online retailers, and point of sale data from brick and mortar). Focusing on this information once per month during the S&OP meeting is too late for all business units to align. Companies should have seamless integration between order entry, inventory management, forecasting and supply planning models and purchase order status to sense risk, pull levers to mitigate potential risk, and communicate within and outside the organization. This is especially important for new product releases, in store programs or promotions (sales, end caps, PDQ. etc) or online promotions (company run or 3rd party). Depending on total supply chain lead time, not having real time visibility and analysis of this information can significantly affect sales and the bottom line.

article thumbnail

Weighted Average Cost Inventory Valuation: Is it Right for My eCommerce Business?

Ship Monk

One of the most irksome tasks of owning an eCommerce business is keeping track of inventory—not just the number of units, but their costs. Knowing how to calculate the value of your merchandise inventory is a big deal for lots of reasons. So how do you calculate inventory costs?