For necessary background, please preread Stock Statuses & Critical Review Explained before proceeding with this article.
Purpose
Interpreting the stock status panels on the Dashboard is the first step in identifying and prioritizing daily inventory tasks. Each panel is designed to give you a quick, actionable overview of your inventory's health.
Step 1: Navigate to the Dashboard
From the main menu on the left, select Dashboard. This is your primary view for monitoring all inventory KPIs and statuses.
Step 2: Locate the Stock Status Panels
The Dashboard is organized into several panels, each corresponding to a specific stock status. The main panels to review are:
Stocked Out: Items with no available stock but active demand.
Potential Stockout: Items projected to run out before the next receipt.
Surplus Orders: Open purchase orders that will create excess once received.
Excess: Items that exceed the Order up to level.
New: Items with stock but insufficient data for classification.
Step 3: Review the Graph Information
Each Stock Status panel displays a visual summary of your inventory health across all status categories.
Benchmark value: The starting inventory value assigned to each stock status category (far left).
Current value: The total inventory value currently assigned to each stock status category (far right).
Item count: The total number of items in each status.
Variance: The percentage difference between the starting (benchmark) value and the current value.
Trend line: A visual indicator showing whether the value is increasing or decreasing.
Your goal: To reduce both the value and number of items in problem statuses over time, signaling healthier inventory balance and fewer service or cost risks.
Step 4: Use the Top 5 Exception Lists
Each status panel displays a Top 5 list of the items that are most significantly contributing to that status, ranked by value.
Stocked Out: The value represents potential lost sales due to unmet demand.
Potential Stockout: The value represents the forecasted demand at risk if no action is taken.
Surplus Orders: The value represents the cost of incoming stock that will create or worsen excess.
Excess Stock: The value represents the cost of inventory currently held above the Order up to level.
New Items: The value represents stock value with no clear classification or forecast purpose.
These lists serve as your daily action plan, helping you focus on the few items that are driving the largest issues in your inventory.
Step 5: Drill Down for More Detail
The panels are interactive and designed as a starting point for investigation.
Click on an item code in any Top 5 list to navigate directly to that item's detailed Inquiry screen.
Click on the total value at the bottom of a list (or the Full report button that appears) to access the complete report showing all items currently in that status.
⚠️ Watchouts
Muted items: Muted items are excluded from Dashboard KPIs and may hide underlying problems. Review muted items periodically to ensure important exceptions are not overlooked.
Status priority: Each item appears under its most critical status only. For example, if an item qualifies as both Excess and Stocked Out, it will appear under Stocked Out.
💡 Tips
Prioritization guide: Use the stock status hierarchy to plan your daily workflow.
Start with the Stocked Out panel, followed by Potential Stockouts, since these directly affect customer service and sales.
Then review Surplus Orders and Excess Stock to manage working capital more efficiently.
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