Inventory Management A vital key to a successful business. By Aaron Labin

How the world would be different if we were only 99.9% accurate 2,000,000 documents will be lost by the IRS this year. Two planes per day landing at Chicago O'Hare airport will be unsafe entries in Webster's Dictionary will be misspelled. 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents daily. 291 pacemaker operations will be performed incorrectly. 20,000 incorrect drug prescriptions will be written this year. 103,260 income tax returns will be processed incorrectly during the year

Definition of Inventory Consists of a list of goods and materials held available in stock for purchase or manufacturing purposes.

Tips given by the Small Business Administration Purchasing Plan Proper Inventory Control Technological Assistance

Purchasing Plan Can you have the right stock at the right time? Yes, if you coordinate delivery times, quantity discounts, and order payment terms.

Purchasing Plan Key Elements Be able to account for depletion of current inventory. When should in stock quantity be maximized? Identify sales trends, giving you the ability to phase out dead inventory. When to phase in new inventory?

Proper Inventory Control: The Four Methods Visual Control Ticker Control Click Sheet Stub Control

Visual Control The most traditional style of inventory control. If you sell x number of items per day, order more when in stock levels fall below x.

Ticker Control Simply put, count stock on a regular basis by dividing into segments and rotating daily which segment gets counted.

Click Sheet Good old pen and paper, write down what you need and re-order it. As low tech as it goes!

Stub Control Retain a portion of the receipt, identifying the stock item and price, facilitating re-order at a later date.

Technology and Inventory Control Point-Of-Sale Systems Offline Point-Of-Sale Systems

Point-Of-Sale System Most common seen in retailers today. Software based. Allow for immediate adjustments of stock. Provide most relevant information associated with stock.

Point-Of-Sale System Can incorporate inventory reports which encompass and replace all aspects of the 4 key elements of inventory control. Much more accurate, they eliminate much of the human error that goes into physically counting an inventory.

Offline Point-Of-Sale Point-Of-Sale is directly linked with suppliers. Automatically relay information on sales trends and submits orders without human interaction.

Inventory Management Effective inventory management is a necessity. A majority of businesses assets are tied up in its inventory and it is crucial to protect this asset. Effective management of this asset can either make or break a business.

Questions???