Inventory accuracy is perhaps one of the most important safeguards any business owner can have against theft if the business deals with any form of physical goods. How so? Well, when you think of it, customer retention, profitability, and operational productivity are all made possible by a reliable inventory system!
In this day and age, no matter whether you are still relying on manually recorded inventory cards, or have a fully computerized system, or perhaps have a combination of the two?the benefits of inventory accuracy cannot be discounted. Just take a look at the benefits below and think of what a good inventory management can do for your business.
The Benefits of Proper Inventory Management
- An accurate record reduces stock-outs by helping you to make the right replenishment decisions.
- You and your sales reps will know for sure that what product you promised to send out will be sent out on time and be received on time.
- You will save time and your distribution centre will be more productive because you don?t have to waste any effort searching for missing or mistakenly recorded goods.
- You will have more cash for opportunistic purchases, capital improvements, and investments because your assets are not tied up in unnecessary inventory.
- Last but certainly not the least, a properly managed inventory in your business or warehouse is proven to reduce employee theft!
Wait, how does that work?
When you have everything recorded and in black and white, your employees cannot just take or steal items out of storage without it going by unnoticed. When everything is accounted for, there is less risk of employees committing white collar crime because they know that the likelihood of being found out is quite high.
So how do you go about this?
The When, What, and Where of Cycle Counting
Basically, cycle counting is just a form of inventory management that follows a regular schedule. Here are what you should consider when planning a cycle counting program:
- WHEN ? the best benefit you can get from cycle counting results from how often you do it. The more often or more frequent you take a record of everything, the easier it is to spot discrepancies.
- WHAT ? you do have to prioritize what to count or what to keep tabs on because you cannot track everything at the same time. More often than not, the most frequently stolen items are those that are small enough to fit in a pocket and have a high street value.
- WHERE ? items that are stored in less accessible areas and easily accessible areas of your office or warehouse is more likely to go missing. Why? If no one?s watching, thieves are more likely to go about their business.
Now, by no means are we saying that cycle counting is all you?ll need to prevent theft, but it is certainly one of the best tools you can use to reduce your organization?s vulnerability to thieving. With this said, it is still important to not let your guard down and not to underestimate a thief?s determination to commit fraud or steal from you. Other measures, such as doing background checks on potential new hires and employing other risk management solutions are still advisable.
Need professional help to safeguard your business from thieves and various forms of fraud? Then contact the best private investigators in Toronto! Contact us so we can determine what you need and talk about how we can help you.
