Field notes
Notes from inventory count day
Count procedures look simple until the warehouse is busy. A few field habits keep the numbers defensible.
Freeze movements where possible, or at least log every receipt and dispatch during the count window. Auditors test the bridge between the freeze and the perpetual records.
Use dual teams for high-value SKUs. One counts; the other records. Swapping roles midway reduces habitual blind spots.
Photograph damaged stock and quarantine it before the count sheet is signed. Arguments about net realisable value are easier with contemporaneous evidence.
Reconcile the count to the perpetual system within forty-eight hours while memories are fresh. Delays turn small variances into unexplained differences that require statistical sampling later.