When the system says ten and the shelf has seven, nobody trusts the stock report and everyone checks the godown by phone. Discrepancies rarely come from one big mistake; they come from many small movements that were never recorded.
Why stock drifts
- Goods moved between godowns without a transfer document.
- Deliveries or receipts entered days later, or not at all.
- Customer returns put back on the shelf but never entered.
- The wrong item or unit chosen on a document.
- Breakage, samples or loss that nobody records.
Document every movement when it happens
Every receipt, dispatch, return and transfer should have a document, made when the goods move, by the person who moves them. If a movement has no document, it is invisible to the stock report.
Count regularly, not just at year end
- Each week, pick a set of items or one store to count.
- Count without looking at the book quantity first.
- Compare the count with the book quantity for the same date.
- Investigate differences before adjusting: look for an unrecorded movement first.
- Record what cannot be explained as an adjustment, with a reason.
Use minimum stock levels
A minimum quantity per item turns stock-outs into a list you can act on. Review the items below their minimum each week and reorder before the customer asks.
Common questions
How often should we count stock?
Counting a few items or one store every week, often called cycle counting, usually finds problems sooner than one full count a year. Count fast-moving and high-value items more often than the rest.