For manufacturing and distribution companies, strong management of inventory systems is a must. This was made only more evident by the coronavirus pandemic, which threw a wrench in the operations of many organizations. In a recent article for the Boston Business Journal, author Dennis Finnegan and Justin Provencher offer valuable advice for shoring up inventory management strategies.
The authors suggest that manufacturers consider implementing the following strategies for inventory management:
- Physical Inventory Management – Perform regular counts of physical inventory. Slower business times—such as those that many organizations are facing during the COVID-19 crisis—are often the best times to do these checks. This is also a great way to put your company’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds to good use.
- Review of Slow-Moving Inventory – Keep track of what inventory items tend to move more slowly than the rest. Regularly review whether keeping these offerings in your product mix is a smart move.
- Improvements to Business Model – Make it a habit to regularly revisit your business model to determine any opportunities for pivoting, changing, or simplifying it. Especially consider doing this in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Consider how the crisis has caused a shift in supply and demand for your products and whether or not there are new areas into which your organization should be making inroads.
In order to remain afloat in the midst of the many unknowns that the pandemic has produced, it is important for manufacturers to give special attention to optimizing inventory management.
For further details, click here to read the article in full at the Boston Business Journal.
