After working in the manufacturing sector for 23 years, I fully understand why a stock control system plays a pivotal role in a business. It is at the centre of the movement of goods from the source to the final destination.
Choosing the right system ensures you have enough stock to meet customers’ demands. Moreover, it protects stock against theft improves efficiency and delivery of customer care services.
Defining Stock Control System
Also known as an inventory control system, a stock control system brings together all pillars of stock management into one system. These pillars are planning, controlling, and balancing.
Together they affect the whole chain from sourcing raw materials to the distribution of finished shipping goods. The information is then stored in cloud servers and relayed to key stakeholders.
A sound stock control system should:
- Support real-time inventory tracking
Real-time tracking keeps you updated on the quantity of stock available and its location. Therefore, it is essential for making informed decisions and predicting future risks associated with the same.
- Include distributors
Although most companies have independent distributors, including them in your system improves overall performance. You can quickly generate invoices, delivery notes and disseminate crucial information to distributors. In contrast, distributors will always refer back to you whenever they want to make a significant move.
- Support procurement
A production cycle starts with the procurement of inputs for the creation of goods or provision of services. Most manufacturing control software usually reserves a slot for them. But, for smoother operations, it must automate all procurement processes. This includes automated reordering and real-time price updates.
- Integrate with all arms of a company
Nowadays, companies have intricate subsystems that represent each department. Examples are CRM for customer care and accounting systems. A stock control system should integrate with them to improve the flow of information and accuracy.
Likewise, it should receive and send data from back-end processes managed by ERP systems.
- Generates inventory reports
Let us take an example of Amazon’s stock control system. It shows inventory levels, transaction history and sums up completed orders. Your system should mirror the same features. However, let your objective be the determinant.
Benefits of a Stock Control System
An inventory control system accomplishes most of a business’s functions through a simple click. It thus saves costs and reduces organisational latency. Here are more benefits.
- Organizes warehouses
- Manages multiple selling points such as Amazon and eBay
- Reduces the likelihood of running out of stock
- Keeps organisational priorities in check
- Tracks expiry dates to reduce losses
With a Stock Control System, Your Business Is Safe From Many Issues
Competition and managerial problems highlight the need for a robust system. At the same time, it is a tool to protect the business against mishaps. Here are some of them:
- Theft and missing stock
- Uneconomical purchase
- Longer delivery time
- Over and understocking
- Loss of goodwill
Take Away
A stock management system is vital for smooth business operations for steady growth. To do this, it should bring together all stakeholders and integrate with other systems.
