The world of inventory management is ever evolving, and for the better. It is commonplace and highly recommended now to have a software-based inventory management system that does away with ledgers, physical records and even Excel sheets. The inventory management software we are talking about affords freedom and peace-of-mind to the end user who is no longer attached to a clipboard and relegated to the depths of the warehouse come stocktake time.
Inventory management software incorporates a range of attributes which that are designed to optimise transparency, accessibility, accuracy in an all in one easy-to-grasp package. Read on to learn more about some of the common features good inventory management systems possess.
Keeping track of inventory
Inventory management denotes the practice of ensuring inventory stock is always in balance with goods receipted in and product being sold. This is, of course, to minimise storage and holding costs and maximise sales and profits. Therefore, in a balanced system, it is imperative to know exactly where inventory stock is in the supply chain so that decisions can be made around the replenishment of stock through ordering or prediction of sales for budgeting purposes. But how is this achieved? Most commonly, this accurate level of tracking is achieved by using barcodes and barcode scanners. This enables each item to be ‘named’ and tracked with a unique identifier. Now, this can also be done through the use of RFIDs (radio-frequency identification tags), batch or lot control and kitting to name a few. The sole purpose across all methods remains to accurately track the inventory stock through the supply chain and manufacturing process.Security
As soon as commercial or personal data is uploaded to the internet, it is of enormous importance to protect it and ensure its integrity remains intact. Therefore, inventory management software must have security at the fore of its focus. It must protect and uphold customer data always from increasing global cyber threats. In tandem with this is the provision of daily backups which are essential to have especially in times when the system fails and information is needed to be retrieved. Ensure security and backups are a feature provided by the provider offering its services.Grows with you
A good inventory management software package should have built-in scalability that allows it to grow with the business. By putting in the hard yards with research at the start, it is a lot easier and cheaper to upgrade a dynamic system to suit the company’s needs rather than a completely new package being required.Learns to share
An inventory management system needs to be good at communicating (integrating) with other systems to prove its worthiness and effectiveness. Data often needs to flow from inventory management software to the CRM, ERP, accounting and other management systems. If all this sharing happens automatically with few errors, then the system starts to become optimised and the need for manual corrections and control is kept to a minimum. Unleashed Software integrates with other best of breed softwares to give you a holistic business solution.Automatic ordering
With the newly developed software systems incorporating multi-channel stock management technology, it is possible for the software to generate a purchase order based on inventory stock levels. This saves time for the user who would otherwise be required to take stock of the warehouse and bill for product they may require.Reporting
Often, the inventory management data of a company is used to increase efficiency and identify gaps in the process so to create a smooth workflow. This reporting ability is also beneficial to shine a light on the buying practices of the customer-base so that their choices regarding product purchase can be somewhat pre-empted. Some of the reports software systems should provide include the following: inventory summaries and totals, transaction reports and order history. Of course, it is also essential that any report generated can be understood and acted upon if need be. The software system can generate a lot of data based on the inventory stock, however it is the manipulation and report generation of the data which translates it into something practical from which staff can make informed decisions regarding ordering and stock control to optimise storage and sales. Check out this Unleashed Academy video to find out what a great inventory management software should offer you.