The Ultimate Supply Tips for Office Managers
If you are the manager of an office you may find that one of your least favourite tasks is keeping on top of office supplies. This can be a real headache in a busy office and it can be hard to order exactly what you need. You may find yourself being caught between having too many supplies and running out half way through an order. Hopefully the following supply tips will help you deal with things a lot more effectively in the future.
It is important to order regularly but not too frequently. If you are ordering supplies more regularly than once a month then you are probably doing something wrong. Use inventory sheets and be strict about sticking to once a month. This will encourage your team to make the best use of the stock they have and it should minimise over-ordering of stock. When you order everything together it should also mean that you pay less delivery - especially if you order your supplies online.
If there are items that you use a lot of then considering buying these in bulk - a few months supply at one time. This should save you money. It is advisable though, that you don't make the whole stock available to your office right away; this will encourage people to overuse it. Instead keep the bulk of this stock in storage.
Try not to allow anyone other than you, or somebody you designate, to order stock. Provide a book where people can suggest things that need ordering, but double check to ensure that these things are actually needed.
Keep a record of all previous orders and track things over time. If you are suddenly using a lot more of an item you will want to know what is happening. If there is no satisfactory explanation for the increase it could be that people are squandering this asset or even taking it home with them. Once you get used to how much you regularly order it becomes a lot easier to spot irregularities.
Regularly check to see if any other supplier is offering better deals on these items. Things change quickly and it could be that you are paying a lot more than you need to. These days few of us can afford to be squandering money on items that we could buy a lot cheaper elsewhere.
The internet gives you a whole list of suppliers available at your finger tips, so take advantage of that.
