An Assessment of Inventory Management in A Wholesale Organization - A Case Study on Challenges, Practices, and Strategic Technological Integration

Abstract

In this study, the inventory management practices of a small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) wholesale organization in Ireland were analyzed to identify the challenges, assess the effectiveness of current practices, and develop strategic recommendations for improvement. The company imports goods from South American and Asian nations, but it has serious problems with stockouts, manual inventory procedures, and logistics. This study used a qualitative case study methodology, conducting in-depth interviews with important organization members to learn about their systems, technology, and inventory management practices. The results showed that although the company uses Sage software to manage inventory well for simple activities, it faces challenges with delays in logistics, which often result in stockouts, and lacks sophisticated technology tools for inventory optimization and demand forecasting. The study also showed that the existing dependence on manual procedures restricts scalability and takes a lot of time, even if skilled workers can produce high accuracy. The organization's usage of key performance indicators (KPIs) like stockout rates and sales performance was found to be beneficial; however, more comprehensive measures like customer satisfaction and supply chain efficiency might be added to improve the KPIs even further. The study concluded by recommending the integration of advanced technologies like RFID and IoT to improve inventory tracking and forecasting accuracy, as well as the expansion of KPIs to provide a more holistic view of inventory management performance. The study's conclusion included expanding KPIs to give a more comprehensive picture of inventory management performance as well as integrating cutting-edge technologies like RFID and IoT to increase inventory monitoring and forecasting accuracy. These suggestions are meant to assist the company in improving its operational effectiveness, lowering stockouts, and better meeting client demand in a competitive sector. In addition to providing useful insights for enhancing inventory management practices through strategic technological integration and process optimization, this research advances knowledge of the inventory management difficulties faced by SMEs in the wholesale sector, particularly those that depend on foreign suppliers.