
QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise
Jesta I.S. is a leading supplier of integrated software solutions for midsize and large retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers specializing in branded goods, apparel, footwear, hard goods and specialty industries. Jesta's c...Read more
QStock Inventory offers a comprehensive inventory control system that helps businesses increase their profitability while reducing inefficiencies across the supply chain. QStock Inventory offers real-time monitoring....Read more
Luminate Platform by Blue Yonder (formerly known as JDA Software) is a cloud-based supply chain management solution for large and enterprise companies. It serves clients across a variety of supply chain industries including automo...Read more
IntelliTrack Assets helps businesses maintain and track various assets including technology, furniture, tools, off-site equipment, and more. The platform enables organizations to monitor asset movement, maintenance schedules, assi...Read more
SIMMS by KCSI offers a full suite of features that are essential to successful inventory and supply chain management, such as tracking, kitting and industry-specific customizations that ultimately help boost the bottom line....Read more
Join the over 2,000 people who have utilized AdvancePro's dynamic and customizable inventory management solution to oversee their warehouses efficiently and maintain customer satisfaction. Deployed as Web-based or on-premise....Read more
Built for growing product-selling businesses using QuickBooks, Acctivate is a premium inventory management & multi-channel order fulfillment add-on that helps you focus on growth without operational limitations. Solve for QuickB...Read more
topShelf Cloud from Scout offers an end-to-end inventory management solution. Applications for kit building, work orders, and asset management are easily accessed from any smartphone or tablet, at anytime. ...Read more
Upp Technology's Aptean WMS is a web-based Distribution system. Mobile ready, it offers users in many industries inventory visibility and accountability in real time. ...Read more
Packed with features and flexibly priced, browser-based Accolent ERP can be installed on-premises or hosted in the Cloud for distributors from 3 to 100+ users. ADS Solutions has 25+ years of experience. ...Read more
Stitch Labs is an integrated, cloud-based inventory and order management solution that caters to mid-size multi-channel retail brands. Stitch serves as an operational hub to brand operations, centralizing inventory across al...Read more
Solid Commerce is a cloud-based inventory management solution that caters to businesses of all sizes across various industries such as computer software, apparel and fashion, consumer goods, business supplies, retail, and more. Ke...Read more
Tigerpaw is a cloud-based professional service automation (PSA) solution designed for small and mid-size customers. It offers project management, time tracking and billing management within a suite. The project management fun...Read more
Megaventory is a cost-effective, Web-based inventory management system. Designed with small businesses in mind, Megaventory includes standard features such as order management, demand forecasting and reporting capabilities....Read more
QuickBooks Commerce is a powerful cloud-based inventory and order management software for modern online businesses. Seamless integration across all major e-commerce platforms ensures that product listings, orders, and data stay up...Read more
In a complex business environment where companies support many sales and purchase channels at multiple locations, accurate planning and forecasting of inventory can be challenging. Without proper management, excess inventory can obstruct your supply chain and working capital.
If you're still using manual methods to estimate the items and their quantities for your inventory, you need to look to automation to optimize your inventory.
Inventory optimization is the process of calculating and determining the right inventory levels across your organization's supply chain. This lets you satisfy customers—who expect a quick delivery time—as well as reduce the high costs of stocking large quantities.
After all, keeping materials and products on the shelf for longer than required drives up your costs. With inventory optimization software, you can increase your visibility across your whole supply chain and ensure that your products stay on the shelf only for the requisite time.
We wrote this buyer's guide to help you understand how inventory optimization software works. This guide provides details on everything you need to know, from benefits to features, before purchasing an inventory optimization solution.
Here's what we'll cover:
What Is Inventory Optimization Software?
Common Features of Inventory Optimization Software
What Type of Buyer Are You?
Benefits of Inventory Optimization Software
Key Considerations
Popular Inventory Optimization Software Comparisons
Inventory optimization software helps businesses control and optimize inventory levels across different warehouse locations. It keeps track of the different products and materials in stock and analyzes the items, as well as the quantities, that need to be reordered.
This software serves as a critical tool for managing perishable inventory, such as food items and medicines. It also analyzes an organization's historical sales and demand data to generate insights on how to optimally utilize and maintain your warehouse operations.
Inventory optimization graph in EazyStock software
As with most complex challenges, selecting the best inventory optimization software tool for your business is easier when you break it down into parts. In the next section, we break down the most common applications and features of this software.
Vendors offer a variety of functional breadth and depth in their inventory optimization solutions. Most inventory optimization software vendors offer some or all of the following capabilities:
Demand forecast |
Review historical sales and demand data to automatically select the right statistical model for calculating future demand. Users can also modify and re-evaluate the demand forecast based on additional information from the key management team, suppliers or vendors. |
Projected inventory levels |
Calculate and display accurate inventory levels for future periods. The projected inventory levels are calculated based on the organization's current inventory, demand forecast and incoming supply. |
Order planning |
Get replenishment suggestions and create an order plan by analyzing when, which and how much of an item to order. Upload the order proposal data to your connected purchasing system (e.g., material requirements planning system) for further action. |
Stock-out and overstock alerts |
Alert your organization in case any product is in short supply, or in excess, in your inventory. |
KPIs and reports |
Monitor business performance with a customizable dashboard that includes operational key performance indicators (KPIs), graphical reports and various filters. These will help users make informed decisions about inventory optimization. |
Integrations |
Integrate the software with your existing systems such as material requirements planning (MRP), enterprise resource planning (ERP) and warehouse management software (WMS) systems. |
To further understand these features and the vendors in this category, call our advisors at (844) 687-6771 for free, no-obligation help. They'll help you narrow down your options by understanding your requirements and recommending the best-suited solutions for your business.
As you begin shortlisting solutions, you need to understand the type of buyer you are, to better narrow down your requirements. The next section breaks down the most common buyer types.
Inventory optimization software is used by businesses of all sizes, across a variety of industries. Before you start evaluating different inventory optimization software, you should know your buyer category. We believe most buyers of this software fall into one of the following categories:
While some of the benefits of inventory optimization software should be clear from our discussion above, we've called out the most important ones below:
To conclude this buyer's guide, here are some important questions to consider before you purchase and implement inventory optimization software: