Industry — Warehousing
Warehousing
Warehousing depends on accurate inventory, efficient movement and clear dispatch visibility. When stock, picking, dispatch and finance are disconnected, reporting becomes slow and decisions become reactive.
In Ricky's Words
Why I enjoy working in warehousing
Warehousing is one of the most measurable parts of any business, and one of the most under-reported. I enjoy it because the improvements are visible: stock lands where it should, counts stop drifting and dispatch stops chasing. Warehouse teams move fast and they will tell you straight away whether a report or an app actually helps them, which is exactly the feedback loop I want.
Common Challenges
What we see most often
- Poor inventory visibility
- Manual spreadsheet reporting
- Inaccurate stock counts
- Slow stock movement reporting
- Picking errors
- Dispatch delays
- Poor OTIF (On Time In Full) visibility
- Disconnected warehouse and finance systems
- Manual exception reporting
Capability 01
Business Intelligence and Reporting
Warehousing performance is accuracy, throughput and cost per unit handled. Reporting shows all three together so service is not bought with unmeasured overtime.
Examples
- Pick, pack and dispatch throughput by shift and zone
- Inventory accuracy and cycle count performance by location
- Cost per line, per order and per unit handled
- Labour productivity against volume, including overtime and agency cost
- Dock-to-stock and order cycle time reporting
KPIs that matter
KPI reference for warehousing
The measures we most often build for this industry, why each one matters, how it is calculated and the bands we benchmark against.
| KPI | Why it matters | How to measure | World class | Benchmark | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory accuracy % | Can we trust the stock figure? | Locations correct ÷ locations counted. | ≥99.5% | 97–99% | 92–97% |
| Order fill rate % | Are orders complete? | Lines shipped complete ÷ lines ordered. | ≥99% | 95–98% | 88–95% |
| Cost per unit handled | Is the operation efficient? | Total warehouse cost ÷ units handled. | Falling | Flat | Rising |
| Picks per labour hour | Are we productive? | Lines picked ÷ paid labour hours. | Top quartile | Median | Bottom quartile |
| Dock to stock hours | How fast is receipting? | Hours from arrival to available to pick. | <4 hrs | 8–24 hrs | 48+ hrs |
Capability 02
Data Engineering, Fabric and AI Readiness
WMS (Warehouse Management System), ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and labour data need to be joined before any of it is trustworthy. We build the model behind the numbers.
Examples
- Join WMS, ERP, labour and transport data in one governed model
- Standardise location, SKU (Stock Keeping Unit) and unit-of-measure structures
- Automate stock movement history and adjustment tracking
- Data quality checks on negative stock, orphan movements and unit conversions
- A complete history for demand and labour forecasting
Capability 03
Power Platform and Business Applications
Small warehouse gaps get filled with clipboards and spreadsheets. We turn those into apps that keep the data clean.
Examples
- Stocktake Power App intergated with your ERP
- Cycle count and stock adjustment capture with approval
- Inbound receipting and discrepancy logging
- Damage, short and return capture with photo evidence
- Equipment pre-start and yard checks
- Automated notification of exceptions to the supervisor
Capability 04
Continuous Improvement and Business Process Improvement
Process waste isn't always on the shop floor. We map how work flows through the business and remove the delays, handoffs, and rework that get in the way.
Examples
- Map pick paths and handling steps to find avoidable travel and touches
- Slotting review driven by real movement data
- Standard work for receipting, picking and dispatch
- Reduce adjustment volume by fixing the cause, not the count
- Improvement register measured in cost per unit handled
What we work on here
- Poor inventory visibility
- Manual spreadsheet reporting
- Inaccurate stock counts
- Slow stock movement reporting
- Picking errors
- Dispatch delays
What changes for you
- Better inventory visibility
- Faster reporting
- Reduced manual work
- Improved stock confidence
- Better dispatch performance
- Better operational decisions