5 Warehouse Management Mistakes You Can Easily Solve

Warehouse management is far from a science. It requires a lot of data, intuition, and experience to make the right decisions.?

Of course, a bit of insight never hurts! So here’s a list of common warehouse management mistakes (and their solutions), so you can stay on the right track.?

5 warehouse management mistakes and how to fix them

Mistake: Overordering or overselling

You’re bound to make this mistake at least once or twice in your manufacturing career. In either case, the problem is a mismatch of customer demand with available inventory.?

This mistake nearly always leads to increased overhead and/or lost profits. Products that don't sell take up space and financial resources, and products that sell out too quickly reduce your overall revenue.

Solution: Automated inventory tracking

Fortunately, new technologies like automated inventory tracking have made avoiding these outcomes significantly easier. This technology is designed to prevent overordering and overselling by automatically matching your inventory to current demand using trend analysis and predictive analytics.??

Mistake: Hanging onto old processes that don't work anymore

This especially applies to processes that have become seriously outdated or are no longer viable.?

Generally, this results from getting too comfortable and too stubborn to update your workflows. Tools like pen and paper tracking, spreadsheet analytics, and manual forecasting might all be processes you've mastered over the years. But with the newer, more effective tools available today, holding onto these older processes only slows your business down.?

Solution: Use order and inventory management software

Investing in order and inventory management software can save you time, boost your productivity, and keep you in line with or even ahead of your competitors. It can take time to master these new tools, but it's more than worth it in the long run.?

Mistake: Not considering safety

One of the most serious warehouse management mistakes you can make is underestimating the importance of workplace safety. There are so many things that can go wrong at any given time in a warehouse, and nearly all of them result from human error.?

Solution: Ensure all warehouse employees are properly trained

So how do you prevent making this mistake? With proper staff training. Make sure that your employees are regularly trained on safety, that any new equipment comes with a fresh round of training, and that you conduct regular safety audits across your warehouse.?

Mistake: Ignoring automation

In the manufacturing world, few tools are as powerful and reliable as automation. Automation can help you boost productivity, supplement labour shortages, and increase your overall consistency.?

But, it can also be expensive, which is why some warehouse managers to overlook automation altogether.?

Solution: Use automation to streamline your processes?

Unfortunately for them, overlooking automation is a pretty big mistake. It puts you behind your competitors, makes it harder for your business to scale, and increases opportunities for human error.?

So embrace automation! We promise, the robots aren’t coming for your job — they’re just trying to make it easier!

Mistake: Not making changes as your business grows

Above all else, you want to avoid becoming stagnant, especially as your business grows. Otherwise, you risk reaching a level of growth that your workflows and tools are no longer equipped to handle.?

Solution: Use an inventory and order management system that scales

To prevent this, you can update your processes as you go or invest in an inventory and order management system designed to scale with your business — instead of a system that hampers your growth.?

Workhorse offers a configurable and scalable platform packed with tools and resources to help you succeed and grow.?

If you want to learn more about what Workhorse has to offer, send me an email at [email protected] or book a demo on our website! ?