Expert Inventory Management Advice

“Model your inventory and fully understand where it comes from, what attributes are critical, where your safety stock will come from, and what levels you must have to keep costs down. Don’t let yourself be surprised by stock outs. Think down the road so that you can be flexible and do better than your competitors.”

Curt Sardeson
Managing Principal
The Open Sky Group

“Perform continuous and appropriate periodic review of inventory. It shouldn’t be a one-time activity. Promotions don’t happen only once. The nature of the supply chain is that things can happen all the time.”

Aman Sapra
Sr. Project Manager
Inventory & Supply Chain Strategy and Analytics
St. Onge Company

“Maintain open communication with your sales and operations planning team so you know what’s coming down the pike in terms of additional volume. Is there a big promotion that inventory planners need to know about and plan for? Is there a new contract with a customer that will drive demand to increase twofold?”

Dave Wheeler
Principal, Supply Chain Services
St. Onge Company

“Ask your vendors if they have a solution that can be mobile-enabled and at your level of sophistication. Do they have something that will allow you to crawl, then walk, and then run? Do they have an inventory solution that will meet all of your future business growth, not just warehousing, but perhaps reverse logistics and repair or manufacturing? Do they have a solution that will give you the granularity of information that you require to make better planning decisions?”

Jennifer Sherman
Senior Director for Fulfillment, Applications Strategy, Oracle

“Ensure speed to value. The quicker you have the information the more valuable and pertinent your decisions are going to be—and the more agile and flexible your company will be.”

Michael Wohlwend
Vice President of SAP Americas,
Vice President of the Warehousing Education and Research Council (WERC)

“Standardize the data so that everybody can see the same information and standardize the process so they know what to do with that information.”

Chris Jones
External Vice President,
Marketing and Services
Descartes