Stock Room Duties

Stockrooms range from large warehouses to small supply rooms.

Stockrooms are present in almost every business. Retailers and grocers will have large inventory stockrooms while offices, restaurants and medical facilities will have smaller supply stockrooms. Some companies may have a specific employee assigned as a stockroom clerk while others depend on a team effort to fulfill the duties associated with the stockroom.

Organization

Organization is crucial to the flow of any stockroom. Larger corporations may have a specific organizational layout for their stockrooms, designed for easy access to products that are needed the most. For most stockrooms, a few general rules typically apply. Items are generally sorted by department first. In supply stockrooms, items are separated by categories, including paper goods such as toilet paper and paper towels, office supplies such as pens, sticky notes and paper clips, and cleaning supplies. Heavy or bulky items should be near the floor to prevent safety issues involved with trying to get heavy merchandise down from areas that are difficult to reach. Products or supplies that are used less frequently are usually placed in the higher areas of a stockroom, while items that are constantly being used are kept conveniently within arm's reach. Labeling shelves and bins in the stockroom helps maintain organization.

Inventory Management

In any industry, someone is responsible for ordering supplies and inventory. In merchandise stockrooms, a clerk will be responsible for ordering as the inventory of a particular item dwindles. In many offices, a bookkeeper or administrative assistant will do the ordering, but it may be everyone's responsibility to let her know which supplies to order. Keeping a clipboard on the wall and instructing employees to add supplies to the list when they see the need is one method of this. For example, if an office associate takes one of only two remaining boxes of paper clips, he would add it to the list in the stockroom. Rotating stock is also important, particularly for time-sensitive products or items with an expiration date. Rotating stock is pulling older products with a shorter shelf life to the front so they will be used first, and putting newer products to the back. Rotating stock can also be useful for items that don't necessarily have an expiration date, such as rubber bands. Rubber bands can dry out and become useless. If a box of rubber bands continues to get pushed to the back of the stockroom, you may wind up throwing them out instead of using them. Managing stockroom inventory also includes properly disposing of outdated or old stock according to your company's guidelines.

General Maintenance

Maintaining cleanliness is also an important duty associated with the stockroom. In addition to clearing garbage and debris and regularly cleaning the shelves, bins and floors, general maintenance also includes making sure the fixtures such as shelves and bins are all properly installed and correcting any problems. Replacing faded or damaged labels and ensuring proper lighting are also typically on a stockroom maintenance checklist.

References

• Career Planner: Stock Clerk
• Retail Minded: Managing Your Stockroom