“I am a CPA”. Make that a recovering CPA. As a recovering CPA, I know how easy it can be to suffer from denial. Why change my inventory methods? However, my time at TrackVia has shed light on new ways to improve inventory management with an online database. Although I’m no longer a practicing CPA, I feel I owe it to all those tasked with year-end inventories to provide them with my “12 step program” to a successful year-end inventory.
1. Don’t let your client wait until 12/31 to create inventory lists. I know, easier said than done. No worries, it is easy to upload an excel document to create an online inventory management database in minutes!
2. Include fields in your database for book total, count total, calculated discrepancy, and warehouse location.
3. Restrict access to select fields (i.e. book total) so counters will only have access to edit and view the count total field. You don’t want to influence the count!
4. Create different views by location for all the inventory takers.
5. Print out and distribute views with item, location, and count total to the team. For teams counting in remote locations, email corresponding views to auditors straight from the database.
6. At this point, don’t let temptation take you back to where you were before. It only takes one misstep to get off the wagon!
7. Let the counting begin. Then have data entry clerks enter count totals into the online database. Better yet, have counters input count totals real-time while conducting the inventory via their laptops.
8. As count totals are input into the database, change history notes will record who made updates/when. No more claiming, “I did not count that many.”
9. Create a view that shows all items with a discrepancy amount not equal to zero. All discrepancies will automatically be calculated via the discrepancy calculated field.
10. Determine total discrepancy impact and key locations with inventory discrepancies by viewing database statistics.
11. Re-count as necessary and update records accordingly.
12. Finish your year-end audit in record time, so you too can enjoy New Years!
Admitting there is a better way is the first step. Feel free to give another CPA a call, and see how I can help get your inventory management database up and running.
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