Inventory Management in the Cloud

Inventory management is about knowing what products to have on hand and when to have them on hand. It’s about understanding what you have in your warehouse and where your stock is located. It means maintaining optimal inventory levels that avoid unnecessary capital expenditures, while ensuring you can meet demand and not run out of goods.

Determining the right inventory management system for your business requires assessing your needs today and your plans for future growth. As your company grows, can your inventory management system scale along with it? As your business evolves, does the system offer flexibility to facilitate change? Will it give you the visibility you need to manage inventory requirements?

Traditional on-premise ERP systems and less sophisticated systems like QuickBooks typically lack the real-time visibility required to effectively manage inventory in today’s modern distributors. Many companies resort to unwieldy spreadsheets to manage inventory or rely on gut feel, potentially costing thousands of dollars in emergency replenishment or lost revenue from stock-outs.

Cloud-based inventory management offers a compelling alternative to manual approaches to inventory management or costly on-premise ERP. The best cloud system provides real-time visibility into inventory, with anywhere, anytime access to critical information. It can function at the core of an ERP system, integrating seamlessly with demand planning, financials and logistics. Automated capabilities eliminate manual inputs while maximizing efficiency throughout the inventory lifecycle.

Scalability, flexibility and visibility are the three key elements that comprise an integrated approach to inventory management in the cloud.

Inventory Management in the Cloud