Operations Analysis/Plan Development
EIM’s Operations Analysis and Plan Development is performed at your facility by owner and inventory management consultant, Jon Schreibfeder. This analysis and plan development typically takes two days on site but may vary based on your company size and specific inventory challenges.
Analysis Phase
Jon Schreibfeder visits your facility (or facilities) and reviews all your inventory-related policies and procedures including:
- What are your corporate policies and procedures for processing every type of inventory-related transaction?
- How do you ensure that on-hand quantities remain accurate?
- What criteria do you use in deciding what products to stock in each location?
- Are the tools available in your computer system adequate to meet your organization’s specific needs?
- Do your existing tools need to be supplemented by spreadsheets, a supplemental database, or other software products?
- How do you predict future customer demand of each product?
- How do you decide when to reorder products and how much to reorder?
- What replenishment source and quantity results in the lowest total cost of each item while retaining a high level of customer service?
- Do you have to implement special tools or practices to deal with:
- Inconsistent vendor lead times
- Importing products from overseas
- Consigned inventory
- Special purchasing opportunities
- Continual introduction of new products
- Replenishment from distribution centers or central warehouses within your organization
- Do your employees understand “best practice” inventory control and inventory management procedures? Are they getting the most benefit from the software tools currently available to them?
- Are products stored in your warehouse in order to minimize your warehousing costs?
- Can your warehouse space be better utilized?
- How do you identify and liquidate dead inventory and excess stock?
- How does your current inventory investment compare to an “ideal” inventory investment utilizing best practice inventory management techniques?
- What measurements do you utilize to track the performance of your inventory investment?
Plan Development Phase
At the completion of the Analysis Phase, your organization schedules a date and time, within one week of the onsite visit, for a web conference. In some situations, this may be done on site the day after the Analysis Phase on site visit.
During the web conference, a preliminary plan is presented that was developed using the information gained in the Analysis Phase. This plan is designed to help your company achieve the greatest benefit possible from the funds you have available to invest in inventory.
During the web conference, the following items are addressed:
- Discuss how to utilize your current computer software to help achieve effective inventory management. These discussions include any necessary or optional software enhancements to your current system as well as possibly supplementing your software with Excel® spreadsheets or an Access® database.
- Modify plan if additional information is provided/discovered.
- Develop incremental as well as eventual goals.
- Determine resources necessary to achieve these goals.
Follow-up Phase
Within a week of the Plan Development Phase session, a finalized plan (in your choice of either Microsoft Word® or Microsoft Project® format) is delivered to you. The plan details what is necessary to achieve effective inventory management based on your organization’s analysis.
As you implement your plan over the next 12 months, we will touch base with you periodically to see how the plan is working. You can always feel free to contact EIM as well by email or phone, free of charge, if you have any questions.
®Access, Word, Project, and Excel are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.