5 Tips And Tricks For Managing Your Office Supply Inventory

Everyone who’s ever worked in a shared office space knows how important the supplies are. We use them every day, and they help us get our work done promptly and correctly. However, these things cost money, and when you don’t pay attention to the supply inventory, you may end up spending thousands of extra dollars per year. If you feel that you don’t have the needed grip on the stock room, and if things get damaged or go missing way too frequently, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we are going to give you some tips and tricks for managing the supply room, and we will help you do that with ease. Check out our list and utilize these tips to benefit you and your company.

Don’t give access to everyone

The first thing you should know about managing your office supply inventory is that the more people have unlimited access to it, the bigger the chances are that something will go missing. Even though we know the people we work with, we cannot fully trust anyone.

This does not mean that someone will try to steal from you, but people just may forget to return something they’ve taken just because they know they can get the same thing again. Limit the number of people who can get things from the inventory and you will see how much things improve.

When someone else is responsible for the things you need, they are much more likely to pay attention, and they are much more likely to be aware of who has taken what. Combine this thing will the rest of the things on this list, and you will instantly see an improvement.

Have a procedure

The best way to track everything that is going on in your stock room is to have a procedure about the things that are being taken and that are being brought back. The best way to do that is to create a request system where your employees will be able to write down the things that they need, go through the checkup process, and see if they’ve returned everything else, they’ve taken before.

Note that by having a person who will be responsible for this process, it is going to be easier for everyone to keep track of the things that are leaving your stock room, the condition they are in, and if something was damaged after the return.

This will not only help you track all the goods that you have, but it will also help you replace the damaged items promptly. In addition, your employees are more likely to pay attention to the condition of the goods they are bringing back, and they are more likely to keep them safe.

You should have a special system for the procedure, and you should always have a hard copy of the list of people who got something from the inventory. You should always learn more about the different types of binders and notes you can use for this purpose, and you should keep them safe by organizing them in folders and separate boxes.

Track your goods

If you have a stock room that is too big for you to pay attention to all the little things, then you can easily just track your goods. Nowadays, there are a lot of devices and microchips that you can add to your products so you always know where they are.

You can even put a limit on where the items go, and you can set a radius in which those goods are allowed to be used. This way, you will make sure that those items never leave the premises, and if they do, an alarm will sound off.

Choose this option for the most expensive items, or the ones that tend to disappear constantly. You can tell your crew about this new procedure, or you can see what happens if they don’t know about it.

Organization is key

If you want to know everything that you have in your stock room, and if you don’t want items to get lost or misplaces, you need to get organized. Sometimes we don’t know everything we have, and we think something is lost.

When the whole place is a mess, you can never find the things you need, and you will never know who took what. Start by organizing everything, and if possible, label things. Always keep the same things in the same place, and return them on the same shelf after use. This way, you will always know what you have, what is missing, and what needs to be replaced.

Check what you own before you purchase

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is making purchases over and over again, without even being aware of the things that you need. Yes, there are some goods that will get damaged by time, and you need to replace them constantly, but it does not mean that you need to buy them before you need them.

When you organize your stock room, you can make a list of the things that need to be maintained and replaced regularly, the things that need to be replaced once per year, and those that should have a lifetime of at least a decade.

Note that when you do this, you will be able to use the warranty of the products as well, and you won’t have to pay thousands of dollars for services. You will also save a lot of money in the long run when you start replacing only the things that you need to replace. Don’t waste money on items you already own, and by keeping your inventory organized, you will have a better grip on your business.

Don’t forget to always keep an inventory log, and write down all the important details. This should contain information, including the people who have used the products, the condition it is, when it was purchased, maintenance dates, and when and why it should be replaced. All of these things will help you maintain your office supply inventory with ease, and you will never have to deal with lost or stolen items again.