Inventory control vs inventory management

Having an efficient inventory control and inventory management system is essential to ensure that you have the right amount of stock in hand to meet consumer demands and minimise inventory investment.

Meaning of inventory management

Inventory management means procuring, storing and selling stock. It also collects data from inventory control and analyses it for important business decision making processes. For better inventory management, one must first focus on better inventory control. Inventory management involves forecasting stock replenishment which aims at when to order, how much to order and from whom to order. Some of the other functions of inventory management are:

• To meet uncertainty in customer demand.
• To meet smooth production requirements.
• To avoid stock out situation.
• To take advantage of quantity discounts.

Automated inventory management software facilitate real-time inventory updates, which ultimately helps to improve the flow of goods to the customers. Thus, it helps in increasing sales.

Meaning of inventory control

Inventory control is also called stock control. It is a process of managing inventory in its warehouse or other storage locations. It includes managing the inventory levels in the company’s warehouse. It ensures that there are no overstocking or stockouts. Further, it also ensures that all goods remain in a usable condition. It helps to set a balancing point between the finished goods and their optimum storage capacity. Some of the other functions of inventory control are:

• It helps to supply stock to different departments in the organisation and keeps a record of the same.
• It works on location, storage and accounting of inventories.
• It bifurcates high-value stocks to help storage.

In simple words, we can say that an effective inventory control system thoroughly monitors the movement, storage and usage of stocks. Automation of inventory control systems aims at maximising profits with the least amount of inventory sitting in the warehouse.

Comparison between inventory management and inventory control

Both inventory control and inventory management work hand in hand, but still they have a few differences, which are narrated below: