What do you do if your career in inventory management needs a boost?

Inventory management is a vital skill for any business that deals with physical goods, whether they are raw materials, finished products, or supplies. It involves planning, organizing, controlling, and optimizing the flow of inventory from the source to the customer, while minimizing costs, maximizing profits, and ensuring quality and customer satisfaction. However, inventory management is not a static or easy skill to master. It requires constant learning, adaptation, and improvement to keep up with the changing market conditions, customer preferences, and technological innovations. If you feel like your career in inventory management needs a boost, here are some tips to help you advance your skills, knowledge, and performance.

1 Assess your current level

The first step to boosting your career in inventory management is to assess your current level of skill, knowledge, and performance. You can do this by asking for feedback from your manager, colleagues, customers, and suppliers, as well as reviewing your own work records, reports, and metrics. You should identify your strengths and weaknesses, as well as the areas where you need to improve or update your skills. You should also compare your level to the industry standards and best practices, and see where you stand in relation to your peers and competitors.

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Arnav Saaketh

Supply Chain Tech || ITC || IIM Mumbai
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Evaluate your proficiency in inventory management by assessing your knowledge, experience, and skill set. Identify areas where you excel and areas that may require improvement to determine your starting point for career enhancement.

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2 Set realistic and specific goals

The next step is to set realistic and specific goals for your career development. You should have a clear vision of where you want to be in the short-term and long-term, and what skills, knowledge, and competencies you need to achieve them. You should also have a timeline and a plan of action for reaching your goals, as well as a way to measure your progress and results. Your goals should be SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. For example, you could set a goal to reduce your inventory turnover ratio by 10% in the next six months, by implementing a new inventory management system and conducting regular audits.

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Arnav Saaketh

Supply Chain Tech || ITC || IIM Mumbai
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Define clear and achievable career goals related to inventory management, such as acquiring a new certification, mastering a specific inventory software, or advancing to a higher position within your organization. Setting specific goals helps focus your efforts and measure your progress effectively.

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3 Learn new skills and update your knowledge

One of the most important ways to boost your career in inventory management is to learn new skills and update your knowledge. You should always be on the lookout for new trends, technologies, tools, and techniques that can help you improve your inventory management processes and outcomes. You can learn from various sources, such as online courses, webinars, podcasts, blogs, books, magazines, and newsletters. You can also join professional associations, networks, and forums, where you can exchange ideas, insights, and experiences with other inventory management professionals. You should also seek mentorship, coaching, or guidance from experts or senior colleagues who can help you grow and develop.

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Arnav Saaketh

Supply Chain Tech || ITC || IIM Mumbai
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Stay abreast of the latest trends, technologies, and best practices in inventory management by pursuing relevant training courses, workshops, or online certifications. Continuously updating your skills ensures that you remain competitive in the field and capable of addressing evolving industry challenges.

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4 Apply what you learn and seek feedback

Learning new skills and updating your knowledge is not enough. You also need to apply what you learn and seek feedback on your performance. You should experiment with different methods, strategies, and solutions, and see what works best for your inventory management goals and challenges. You should also monitor and evaluate your results, and identify what you did well and what you can improve. You should also ask for feedback from your manager, colleagues, customers, and suppliers, and use it to refine your skills and knowledge. You should also celebrate your achievements and reward yourself for your efforts.

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5 Expand your network and visibility

Another way to boost your career in inventory management is to expand your network and visibility. You should connect with other inventory management professionals, both within and outside your organization, and build relationships based on trust, respect, and mutual benefit. You should also showcase your skills, knowledge, and achievements, and demonstrate your value and contribution to your organization and industry. You can do this by participating in projects, events, conferences, seminars, workshops, or webinars, where you can share your ideas, insights, and best practices. You can also write articles, blogs, or posts, or create videos, podcasts, or presentations, where you can showcase your expertise and experience.

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6 Keep an open mind and embrace change

The last tip to boost your career in inventory management is to keep an open mind and embrace change. Inventory management is a dynamic and evolving skill that requires constant adaptation and innovation. You should always be ready to learn new things, try new approaches, and face new challenges. You should also be flexible and resilient, and cope with uncertainty and ambiguity. You should also be proactive and seek opportunities to improve your inventory management skills, knowledge, and performance, and advance your career goals.

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7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Sharmistha Datta

2X Linkedin Top Voice | Elected Students' Council | IIM Kozhikode Co’25 | Tata Steel | VSSUT, Burla | Certified ISO QMS auditor | Certified Lean Six Sigma
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- Read , read and read! The key to improve your knowledge by brushing up theoretical skills - learn about various industries methodologies to maintain inventory. This can be industries of your domain or cross functional , learnings of which could be implemented in your current domain to maintain inventory. Understand that the inventory and stock keeping definition varies industry wise. - upskilling and learning about new-age technologies will help to picturize inventory management in the longer run

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What do you do if your career in inventory management needs a boost?

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1 Assess your current level

2 Set realistic and specific goals

3 Learn new skills and update your knowledge

4 Apply what you learn and seek feedback

5 Expand your network and visibility

6 Keep an open mind and embrace change

7 Here’s what else to consider

Inventory Management

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What do you do if your career in inventory management needs a boost?

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

1 Assess your current level

2 Set realistic and specific goals

3 Learn new skills and update your knowledge

4 Apply what you learn and seek feedback

5 Expand your network and visibility

6 Keep an open mind and embrace change

7 Here’s what else to consider

Inventory Management

Rate this article

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