Overview

Regardless of which area of the hospitality industry you work in, maintaining stock records is an important part of your responsibility. Stock records allow management to control and account for the large investment it has in its stock holding. This may be the towels in a hotel, food products in a kitchen, glassware in a bar or brochures at a tourism enquiry desk.

Purchasing accurate amounts of stock is very important to the success of your business. It is also very important to have the required stock to serve your customers when they need it.

Purchasing costly items such as bed linen and furniture can be a problem if not managed carefully. From a financial point of view, the impact of purchasing new linen for a 200- room hotel could result in a cash flow crisis.

Stock lost due to shrinkage has a direct impact on the establishment’s profits because the cost of the stock cannot be recovered. As a manager, it is not enough for you to simply identify the amount of stock loss, you must understand the causes of losses and the ways you can improve systems to minimise loss.

Occasionally you may encounter problems with the supply and delivery of stock. This can result from a variety of situations, including shortage of stock at a warehouse, deliveries to the wrong location or late deliveries. Following up orders and monitoring the delivery process will help you minimise the impact these incidents can have on your business.

In this unit you will learn how to:

• Maintain stock levels and records
• Process stock orders
• Minimise stock losses
• Follow up orders
• Organise and administer stocktakes.