10 inventory forecasting issues

1. Forecasting process – what is the current forecasting process and who is involved in setting targets?
2. Information technology – identify the current IT system(s) employed by the company and are regular upgrades and improvements taking place?
3. Collaboration – does collaboration take place between the various internal and external partners?
4. Items overstocked and out of stock – Which items are over and out of stock and what are the reasons? Is there a pattern emerging in the data?
5. Expired and out of date – What is the shelve life and how does it affect the forecasting?
6. Safety stock factor – are you using a safety stock factor and is it the same for all product SKUs and inventory classes?
7. Product life cycle – What are the current product life cycles and how do the various SKUs differ from one another?
8. Lead times- identify the product lead times and are there potential bottlenecks?
9. Process flow and visibility – do you have a clear understanding of the inventory flow and are there potential opportunities to reduce time wastage?
10. Continuous evaluation – is continuous evaluation and tracking taking place and are we tracking the right KPIs?