Quick Summary: Inventory performance depends on routine execution across five areas: forecast governance, dashboard monitoring, ordering workflow, policy management, and data quality. Consistent review and adjustment in each area turns Netstock into an ongoing operational control layer rather than a passive reporting tool.
Netstock empowers businesses to make informed inventory decisions, but a consistent approach is vital to harness its full potential. By incorporating these five key areas into your daily, weekly, and monthly routines, you can achieve optimal inventory management and drive your business to new levels of efficiency!
Mastering Forecasts
Accurate forecasts are the backbone of effective inventory management. Netstock provides the tools to help you stay on top of this critical area. Begin by reviewing exceptions and making necessary changes to the forecasts.
Exception Reviews
Monthly: Focus on significant discrepancies where sales have exceeded the forecast or where forecasts have exceeded sales for the period. Our exception reports can be checked over 1, 3, 6, or 12-month periods. Sort by value, units, or percentage, and choose an appropriate cut-off to focus on the highest variances.
Weekly: Perform weekly reviews using the month-to-date exception reports, to help identify unexpected sales that may lead to a stock-out position
Daily: Check for any items where forecasts do not align with subjective expectations.
Adjusting Forecasts
Combine algorithmic data with valuable market knowledge, including insights on promotions, customer changes, supplier issues, or broader market trends.
Use a combination of high-level macro adjustments (location or group) and fine-tuning of individual items as necessary.
Freeze macro-level forecasts with caution. Always consider the potential impact on future order recommendations.
Adjust forecast trends for the full planning horizon (lead time + safety stock + replenishment cycle), not just the current month.
➜ For more on this topic, read: Forecasts That Need Attention Explained and Understanding Forecast Adjustments & Freezing.
Leveraging Dashboards for Actionable Insights
Dashboards act as your early warning system. They highlight risks before they become costly problems.
Daily/Weekly: Review Stockouts & Potential Stockouts to identify critical items and take preemptive action.
Regularly: Evaluate Surplus Orders & Excess Inventory to prevent overstocks and free up working capital.
Monthly: Review New Items to ensure they are correctly classified and forecasted.
When reviewing, always look at:
Stocking indicators.
Policy settings (lead time, safety stock, replenishment cycle, target fill rate).
Data accuracy and forecast alignment.
Utilize supersession functionality if product replacement is required.
➜ For more on this topic, read: New Items Explained and Supersessions Explained.
Streamlining Ordering
Netstock automates the creation of recommended purchase orders and transfers, saving time and reducing errors.
Apply Filters: Narrow orders by buyer, category, supplier, or port of loading. Add look forward days if needed.
Review Recommendations: If something looks wrong, investigate by checking stocking indicators, policies, and data inputs. Correct the root cause rather than just the order.
Top-Up Orders: Use this functionality to hit targets for container value, weight, or volume, or to pull forward orders before the next cycle.
Download to ERP: Send orders directly to your ERP if integrated. Otherwise, download as CSV or enter them manually.
➜ For more on this topic, read: Placing and Managing Orders Explained
Regular Policy Reviews
Policies define how items are managed. Regular reviews keep them aligned with market conditions. Review policies every 3-6 months, or more frequently if you have short lead times and replenishment cycles.
Evaluate Needs: Determine whether to increase or decrease target fill rates or adjust replenishment cycles for certain items or categories, based on risks, product performance and market insights
Review Stocking Indicators: Regularly check for slow-moving or obsolete items.
Ensure Accuracy: Make sure lead times are as accurate as possible, especially for items with a high supply risk or where supply chain disruptions are impacting shipping times.
➜ For more on this topic, read: Mastering Classifications and Mastering Policy Defaults
Maintaining Data Quality
Clean data is the foundation of Netstock’s accuracy. Regularly check data quality reports to:
Validate incoming data feeds.
Correct mismatched or missing values.
Ensure consistency across suppliers, locations, and categories.
➜ For more on this topic, read: Data Validation & Quality
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