Introduction: Physical Inventory

Transcription

1 Introduction: Physical Inventory Before beginning, see System Setup: Inventory Counts (page 30) to verify your system is properly set up. This guide is intended to be used with the most recent version of the Ascend RMS and AscendScan software; for details, contact Ascend Support by phone at or at A physical inventory count is completed once a year. Every salable product is counted, regardless of location (e.g. sales floor, back stock, warehouse, etc.). Physical inventory counts are performed by store section, not by category. This method ensures no products are missed during the count. While your store is closed for physical inventory count: Do not allow customers to drop off products for work orders or returns. Do not process sales, layaways, or work orders. Scan all products currently for sale (on the sales floor or in backstock). Do not scan: Items on layaway transactions. Items on work order transactions. Unreceived orders. Non-inventory items (e.g. miscellaneous hardware for repairs). (Multi-Store Dealers) Pending transfer items. Revision: 12/10/2013

2 Process Overview 1. Prepare for Physical Inventory (page 5) a. One Month Prior (page 6) b. One Week Prior (page 7) c. Two Days Prior (page 9) d. One Day Prior (page 11) 2. Scan Products (page 15) a. Prepare the Scanner(s) (page 15) b. Delete Previous Count Results (page 16) c. Scan Products (page 16) 3. Save Scanned Section File (page 18) a. Save to Computer (page 18) b. Delete Previous Count Results (page 18) 4. Physically Count Section Items (page 17) 1 5. Process Items Not Found (page 20) 6. Import Count Results (page 21) a. Import Scan Files (page 21) b. Print Inventory Report (page 22) c. Analyze Results (page 23) Discrepancy Definitions (page 23) 7. Finalize the Count (page 27) a. Reconcile Inventory (page 27) b. Archive Results (page 27) c. Reconcile with Accounting Software (page 28) d. Determine Shrink Amount (page 28) Additional Resources VIDEOS View the following training videos (available on Inventory - Overview Runtime: 3:31 1 Best Practice: Verify the accuracy of scan results by physically counting items in a section. - 2 / 45 -

3 Introduction: Physical Inventory 1 Process Overview 2 Additional Resources 2 Prepare for Physical Inventory 5 Additional Resources 5 One Month Prior 6 One Week Prior 7 Two Days Prior 9 One Day Prior 11 Next Steps 13 Scan Products 15 Additional Resources 15 Prepare the Scanner(s) 15 Delete Previous Count Results 16 Scan Products 16 Next Steps 16 Physically Count Section Items 17 Compare Results 17 Next Steps 17 Save Scanned Section File 18 Additional Resources 18 Save to Computer 18 Delete Previous Count Results 18 Next Steps 19 Process Items Not Found 20 'Not Found' Items 20 Next Steps 20 Import Count Results 21 Additional Resources 21 Import Scan Files 21 Print Inventory Report 22 Analyze Results 23 Next Steps 26 Finalize the Count 27 Additional Resources 27 Reconcile Inventory 27 Archive Results 27 Reconcile with Accounting Software 28 Determine Shrink Amount 28 Appendix A: System Setup: Inventory Counts 30 Users 30 Settings & Options 30 Appendix B: Audit Product Labels 31 Prepare for Your Label Audit 31 Prepare the Inventory Scanner 31 Audit Product Labels 32 Appendix C: Remove Duplicate Products Feature 33 Begin Removing Duplicate Products 33 Duplicate Products are Identical 33 Duplicate Products are Unique 34 Appendix D: Manage Case Quantity Products 35 Additional Resources 35 Configure Products Ordered by the Case 35 Order Products by the Case 36 Appendix E: Manually Re-Calculate Average Cost 37 Within Product Editor 37 Appendix F: Manually Transfer the Product File 38 Create Product File 38 Transfer Product File 38 Appendix G: Customized Screen Views 39 Sort by Column 39 Move Column(s) 40 Group by Column 41

4 Re-size Column(s) 42 Apply a Filter 42 Advanced Filters 43 Printing & Exporting 44-4 / 45 -

5 Prepare For Physical Inventory A physical inventory count is completed once a year. Preparation begins well in advance of your scheduled inventory date. Use the following checklists to organize your preparatory tasks. Skip to Section One Month Prior (next page) One Week Prior (page 7) Two Days Prior (page 9) One Day Prior (page 11) Additional Resources VIDEOS View the following training videos (available on Inventory Prep One Month Before Runtime: 6:35 Inventory Prep One Week Before Runtime: 12:09 Inventory Prep Two Days Before Runtime: 3:54 Inventory Prep One Day Before Runtime: 5:57-5 / 45 -

6 One Month Prior Perform the following tasks at least one month before your physical inventory count is scheduled. 1. Determine the date of your physical inventory count. When choosing the date, consider the following: Plan to close your store. Close on the slowest day of the week. Use Ascend's Sales by Day of Week report to help you determine the best day for closing: Ascend Desktop > Reports > Sales folder. Expect your physical inventory count to take a full day. Schedule your employees accordingly. 2. Inform your employees and customers of your inventory count date. Display the date prominently, e.g. on your website and voic , and on signs throughout the store. 3. If you require additional inventory scanners for your inventory, help@ascendrms.com to reserve the required number of rental units. 4. Reduce your inventory as much as possible. Only order necessary products. Use Ascend's Aged Inventory by Date report to view a list of products that are not selling through: Ascend Desktop > Reports > Inventory folder. 5. Familiarize your staff with the step-by-step process to be followed on the actual date of your inventory count; see Introduction: Physical Inventory (page 1). 6. Audit your product labels. A product label audit reduces the time spent addressing unscannable product labels on the day of inventory; see Audit Product Labels (page 31). - 6 / 45 -

7 One Week Prior Perform the following tasks at least one week before your physical inventory count is scheduled. 1. Run Ascend's Remove Duplicate Products utility. Resolving duplicate SKUs and UPCs ensures that each product in your store is labeled with a unique SKU or UPC. For details, see Remove Duplicate Products Feature (page 33). Duplicate products cannot be reconciled in your system. Resolve these issues ahead of time to minimize time spent addressing product issues on the day of inventory. 2. Use Ascend s Category Mapper to address products currently in inventory which are not assigned to a category. a. From the Ascend Desktop, select the Tools menu > Category Mapper. All uncategorized products currently in inventory are displayed. Products are listed in alphabetical order. 1 b. In the left pane, select product(s) that belong in a category together. [Shift]+click to select multiple adjacent products. [Ctrl]+click to select multiple, non-adjacent products. c. In the right pane, select the new category. d. Click [Link] (located between the panes) to categorize the selected product(s). 3. Run Ascend s Inventory with Cost Greater Than MSRP reports: Ascend Desktop > Reports > Inventory folder. If necessary, remedy any products configured with an invalid cost Obtain the following supplies: Masking tape for marking store sections. Paper for labeling store sections. Markers for labeling store sections. Highlighters for tracking items to investigate. Containers to hold items not recognized by the inventory scanners. High-quality scale for counting small parts. 1 To view all products (including those not in inventory), disable the Inventory Only option. 2 Products displayed may be caused by an incorrectly configured Divide By on case quantity items; see Manage Case Quantity Products (page 35) for details on proper configuration for these products, and steps to correct their cost. - 7 / 45 -

8 5. Assign the roles employees will assume on your inventory date: Product Investigator(s): Manager(s) responsible for: o Adding missing product to Ascend. o Re-labeling products which cannot be scanned. o Investigating count discrepancies. Reconciler: Manager responsible for: o Inventory scanner preparation. o Saving scan files to the computer. o Reconciling the count with Ascend (accepting final count results). Counters: (optional) Employees responsible for: o Physically counting items. o Keeping track of completed sections. Scanners: Employees responsible for scanning products with the inventory scanners. 6. Designate a workstation where count results will be stored 7. Verify the following programs are installed on the designated computer for count results: AscendScan: To obtain the latest version of this program, contact Ascend Support. Microsoft Excel, or a similar spreadsheet program. 8. Consider pre-counting large quantities of small parts that are sold very infrequently (e.g. spokes, CO 2 cartridges, bearings) using a high-quality scale. Clearly label pre-counted product as such. If any pre-counted products are sold prior to your inventory, ensure that the labeled quantity is updated accordingly. a. Weigh one item. Write down the weight. b. Weigh all items. Write down the weight. c. If weighing items in a container, weigh the empty container. Write down the weight. d. If necessary, subtract the recorded container weight from the recorded weight of all items. Write down the adjusted weight. e. Divide the adjusted weight of all items by the weight of one item, e.g. 100 (all items) divided by 25 (single item) equals 4 (quantity of all items). f. Record the calculated quantity. - 8 / 45 -

9 Two Days Prior Perform the following tasks at least two days before your physical inventory count is scheduled. 1. Verify an SD memory card is installed in the inventory scanner: MC1000 model: 2 GB standard only. MC2180 model: Up to 32 GB microsd. 2. Fully charge inventory scanner and, if available, spare batteries. Check the battery life indicator on the device. 3. Complete pending warranties. 4. Halt order receiving. 5. (Multi-Store Dealers) Verify all pending transfers are resolved. Halt transfers between stores until your physical inventory count is complete. - 9 / 45 -

10 6. Create a Section Status Checklist. Use this checklist to record which store sections are complete. Include the following columns: Section Number Section Description Scanner Name (initials) Section Complete (Y/N). If you are also physically counting items to verify inventory scanner results 1, include the following columns: Scan Count Physical Count Physical Counter Name (initials) 1 Best Practice: For details on this process, see Physically Count Section Items (page 17) / 45 -

11 One Day Prior Perform the following tasks at least one day before your physical inventory count is scheduled. 1. Create a specific folder for storing your physical inventory count files. a. From the Windows Desktop, right-click in a blank area. b. From the displayed menu, select New > Folder. c. Enter a descriptive name, e.g. Physical Inventory - <YYYY>. d. On the keyboard, press [Enter]. 2. Organize products for ease of scanning: Label bin and display items. Or, place these items in boxes with scannable barcodes. Move hard to reach to items within easy reach. Turn items so that barcodes face front. 3. Using tape, section off your store into small areas for scanning. 1 Be sure to divide the store into sections that can be scanned easily. Physically label each section with a number. 1 An average store has sections; see end of section for example / 45 -

12 4. Verify your inventory scanner is configured with Ascend's recommended settings. a. From the scanner s Main Menu, press [3] for Settings. Found Item Default Qty: If required, press [1] to change this setting. (recommended) 1: When a barcode is recognized by the scanner, a quantity of one is recorded by default. QOH: When a barcode is recognized by the scanner, the quantity in stock for the product at the time the product file was created is recorded by default. 1 Not Found Item Default Qty: If required, press [2] to change this setting. (recommended) 0: When a barcode is not recognized by the scanner and the Allow Not Found option (below) is enabled, a quantity of zero is recorded by default. 1: When a barcode is not recognized by the scanner and the Allow Not Found option (below) is enabled, a quantity of one is recorded by default. 2 Allow Not Found: If required, press [3] to change this setting. (recommended) N: When a barcode is not recognized by the scanner, the item is not recorded in the scan file. Y: When a barcode is not recognized by the scanner, the item is recorded in the scan file. 3 Exclude Items w/zero QOH: If required, press [4] to change this setting. Y: Items which were not in stock at the time the product file was created are not recognized by the scanner. 4 (recommended) N: Items which were not in stock at the time the product file was created are recognized by the scanner, and are recorded in the scan file. Beeper Volume: Press [5] to adjust the volume of the scanner's audible alert sound. Low: The most quiet beep setting. Med: The mid-level beep setting. Hi: The most loudest beep setting. b. Press [6] to save changes. c. When the Settings have been saved prompt is displayed, press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/[enter] (MC2180 model). d. Press [0] to exit the Settings screen. 1 Your inventory count is most accurate when you rely on the inventory scanner to tabulate results. 2 In order to reduce time spent investigating products which do not scan, do not record products which do not scan in the scan file. Immediately segregate these items for investigation - it is extremely difficult to determine the scanned item(s) once they are combined in Ascend. 3 In order to reduce time spent investigating products which do not scan, do not record products which do not scan in the scan file. Immediately segregate these items for investigation - it is extremely difficult to determine the scanned item(s) once they are combined in Ascend. 4 In order to reduce time spent investigating products which do not scan, do not exclude any products from scans / 45 -

13 5. Segregate the following items from the inventory count: Items on layaway transactions Items on work order transactions Items waiting to be received (Multi-Store Dealers) Unresolved transfer items 6. After close of business, back up your Ascend system. 1 Next Steps Continue on to Scan Products (page 15). 1 See System Setup and Settings > Creating Backups / 45 -

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15 Scan Products Using an inventory scanner is recommended because it increases both the speed and accuracy of inventory counts. Complete the following steps to scan products with the inventory scanner. 1 Skip to Section Prepare the Scanner(s) (below) Delete Previous Count Results (next page) Scan Products (next page) Additional Resources VIDEOS View the following training videos (available on Inventory - Prepping Scanners Runtime: 4:27 Inventory - Scanning Your Inventory Runtime: 4:38 Prepare The Scanner(s) 1. Place the inventory scanner in the cradle. 2. From the Ascend Desktop, select the Tools menu > Create Handheld Device Product File. 3. From the displayed menu, select your export preference: 2 Export Active Products 3 Only: Export only those products which have history in your system. Export All Products: Export all products which exist in your system and are not hidden (removed). 4. When an inventory scanner is connected to the computer, the Handheld Device Detected prompt is displayed. Click [Yes]. 5. When the Process Complete prompt is displayed, click [OK]. The product file is copied to the following location: 4 Windows XP 5 : My Computer > Mobile Device > Storage Card Windows 7: Computer > WindowsCE > Storage Card 1 If you are using multiple inventory scanners for your count, complete these steps for all scanners. 2 Best Practice: In order to reduce time spent investigating products which do not scan, export all products to the inventory scanner. 3 An "active" product in your system meets at least one of the following criteria: Qty is not 0 (including negative values), or Inventory Adjustments/Multi-Store Transfers (including pending and denied requests)/order Items (including those on incomplete orders) /Sales Items (including those on incomplete transactions) exist 4 To manually transfer the product file to the inventory scanner later (e.g. the inventory scanner is not currently connected), see Manually Transfer the Product File (page 38). 5 Windows XP will no longer be supported after April 8, See the Ascend RMS Blog entry at for details / 45 -

16 Windows 8: Computer > WindowsCE > Storage Card 6. If the Load Product File to Memory prompt is displayed, press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/ [Enter] (MC2180 model) on the keypad to close this prompt. Delete Previous Count Results 1. From the inventory scanner's Main Menu screen, press [2]. The Delete Reconciliation File prompt is displayed. 2. Press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/[enter] (MC2180 model). The Reconciliation File Deleted prompt is displayed. 3. Press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/[enter] (MC2180 model) to close the prompt. The inventory scanner's scan file is deleted. Scan Products Do not scan items which were added to a layaway, work order, or multi-store transfer request. Unresolved warranty items are considered part of your inventory and must be scanned. 1. Press [1] to enter the Scan screen. The Section Number dialog box is displayed. If the Section Number dialog box does not display, previously scanned products were not properly cleared; return to Delete Previous Count Results (above). 2. Enter the number assigned to the section which is to be scanned Press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/[enter] (MC2180 model). 2 The following message is displayed: Scanner Ready. 4. Point the device at a barcode Press the Yellow button to scan. The inventory scanner emits an audible status alert: High Tone Beep: Barcode was recognized by the inventory scanner. The item is added to the scan file on the inventory scanner. 4 Low Tone Beep: Barcode was not recognized by the inventory scanner. Segregate the item in a bin for not recognized items. 5 After all items in the store are scanned, you will go back and investigate these items. 6. Continue scanning until all products in the section are counted. 7. On the inventory scanner keypad, press [F] followed by [0] to exit the Scan screen. Next Steps Continue on to Save Scanned Section File (page 18). 1 Only numeric characters can be entered. 2 Section Number is automatically entered as three digits, e.g Only a UPC (preferred) or In-Store SKU can be scanned. 4 To manually enter a quantity: Use the inventory scanner's numeric keypad to enter the number of items (e.g. 147) and press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/[enter] (MC2180 model). Your inventory count is most accurate when you rely on the inventory scanner to tabulate results. Only enter quantity manually if you are counting a large quantity of hard to scan items, e.g. spokes. 5 If the product has multiple barcodes, scan them all before sending for investigation / 45 -

17 Physically Count Section Items Improve count accuracy by verifying a section's inventory scanner results. After scanning, physically count the items in the section. 1 Then, compare the results obtained by physically counting items to the section's inventory scanner results. Compare Results 1. When the file is saved to the computer (see Save Scanned Section File (next page)), record the value from the scan 2 in the Scan Count column on the Section Status Checklist. 2. Physically count the number of individual products in the completed section. 3. On the Section Status Checklist for the section, enter: The Counter's initials. The Physical Count value. 4. Compare the values in the Physical Count and Scan Count columns: If any difference in the values is acceptable: On the Section Status Checklist, enter Y in the Section Complete column. If the difference in the values is not acceptable: Re-count and/or re-scan the section as desired. Next Steps Continue on to Process Items Not Found (page 20). 1 Best Practice: Do not allow the same employee to scan and physically count a section. Do not allow Counters to view scan totals. 2 The scan count is recorded in the scan file's name: sectionxxxx_countxxx.txt / 45 -

18 Save Scanned Section File After scanning a section, save the scan file to your computer and clear the count results to prepare for the next scan. Skip to Section Save to Computer (below) Delete Previous Count Results (below) Delete Previous Count Results (below) Additional Resources VIDEOS View the following training videos (available on Inventory - Saving Scaned Section Files to Your PC Runtime: 4:42 Save To Computer 1. On the inventory scanner keypad, press [F] followed by [0] to exit the Scan screen. 2. Place the inventory scanner in the cradle. 3. Navigate to the following location: Windows XP 1 : My Computer > Mobile Device > Storage Card Windows 7: Computer > WindowsCE > Storage Card Windows 8: Computer > WindowsCE > Storage Card 4. Right-click the sectionxxxx_countxxx.txt file > select Copy. 5. Navigate to the location where you are saving physical inventory results. 6. Select the Edit menu > Paste. 7. On the Section Status Checklist for the section, enter: The Scanner's initials. The scan count (recorded in the scan file's name: sectionxxxx_countxxx.txt). Delete Previous Count Results 1. From the inventory scanner's Main Menu screen, press [2]. The Delete Reconciliation File prompt is displayed. 2. Press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/[enter] (MC2180 model). The Reconciliation File Deleted prompt is displayed. 3. Press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/[enter] (MC2180 model) to close the prompt. The inventory scanner's scan file is deleted. 1 Windows XP will no longer be supported after April 8, See the Ascend RMS Blog entry at for details / 45 -

19 Next Steps (optional) Improve count accuracy by verifying a section's inventory scanner results; see Physically Count Section Items (page 17). 1 Scan the next section, and repeat this process until all sections are scanned; see Scan Products (page 16). When all sections are complete, continue on to Process Items Not Found (next page). 2 1 Best Practice: Verify the accuracy of scan results by physically counting items in a section. 2 If all products scanned were recognized by the inventory scanner, skip to Import Count Results (page 21) / 45 -

20 Process Items Not Found After all store sections are scanned, the Product Investigator(s) must process items which were not initially recognized by the inventory scanner. 'Not Found' Items 1. Investigate why each item was not recognized: If the product is in your Ascend system: Verify correct label information is saved in Ascend, then relabel the product. If the product is not in Ascend: Add the product to Ascend If products were added or modified in Ascend, update the inventory scanner's product file When all issues are resolved, re-scan the items. Be sure to use a section number which is not already assigned to a store section After scanning, save the scan file to your computer as a separate section. 5 Next Steps Continue on to Import Count Results (next page). 1 See Inventory Management > Product Management > Product Information > Add and Modify Products. 2 Multi-Store Dealers: Add and modify products only at the primary location. Perform a manual Data Exchange at all locations to receive the updated information. 3 See Scan Inventory > Prepare the Scanner(s) (page 15). 4 See Scan Inventory > Scan Products (page 16). 5 See Save Scanned Section File (page 18) / 45 -

21 Import Count Results After all products in the store are scanned, the scan files must be imported into Ascend and compared to inventory numbers recorded in the system. Skip to Section Import Scan Files (below) Print Inventory Report (next page) Analyze Results (page 23) Additional Resources VIDEOS View the following training videos (available on Inventory - Importing Count Results Runtime: 3:16 Inventory - Analyzing Results Runtime: 10:02 Inventory - Using Customizable Grids Runtime: 9:16 Inventory - Investigating and Finalizing Results Runtime: 12:25 Import Scan Files 1. From the Ascend Desktop, select the Tools menu > Reconcile Inventory. The Select Categories Scanned dialog box is displayed. 2. Select All Categories. 3. Click [Continue]. The Select Files dialog box is displayed Navigate to the location where you are saving physical inventory results. 5. Select all section files. a. Select the first file displayed. b. Scroll to the end of the file list. c. On the keyboard, hold [Shift]. d. Select the last file displayed. All adjacent files are selected. 6. Click [Open]. The Validating/Pre-Analyzing progress is displayed. 2 1 If the Handheld Device Detected prompt is displayed: Click [No]. 2 This process can take several minutes to complete / 45 -

22 Print Inventory Report Be sure to file this report for future reference. Ascend does not track historical inventory values. 1. From the toolbar, select the File menu > Print Inventory by Category Summary Report. 2. The Print Document dialog box is displayed. 3. Click [Print]. 4. Label the printout Starting Inventory Dollars. 5. File the printout in a location it can easily be retrieved / 45 -

23 Analyze Results Count results are automatically sorted by discrepancy Quantity changes made in the Reconcile Inventory screen are not saved when exiting. The <Barcode> SKU/UPC Not Found (below) discrepancy may require the user to exit the Reconcile Inventory screen; resolve this discrepancy first. DISCREPANCY DEFINITIONS <Barcode> SKU/UPC Not Found The barcode scanned does not exist as a UPC or SKU in Ascend, e.g. a Part Number barcode was scanned. 4 To resolve: 1. Locate the section in which the item was scanned. a. Navigate to the location where you are saving physical inventory results. b. In the Search field (located on the toolbar), enter the barcode. c. On the keyboard, press [Enter]. All files which contain the barcode are displayed. 2. Determine the correct UPC (or SKU) for the product: 5 If the UPC/SKU is incorrect in Ascend, update the product with the correct barcode. 6 If the item is labeled with an incorrect barcode, print a new label. Update the item in the section's scan file. a. Open the scan file using a text editing program, e.g. Microsoft Notepad. The count results are displayed in the following format: <Quantity>,<Barcode>. b. Navigate to the beginning of the file by pressing [Ctrl]+[Home] on the keyboard. 1 All discrepancies applicable to a scanned item are displayed simultaneously. To view only items which have discrepancies, check the Discrepancies Only option. 2 If the quantity scanned for a product must be changed (e.g. Scanner typed 722 instead of 72 when manually entering quantity), enter the correct quantity in the New Qty field (to select the entire field, press [F9]). New Difference values and/or discrepancies are not automatically displayed - items with a New Qty change since the last analysis display in bold italics. To view new results, click [Analyze]. 3 The Reconcile Inventory screen can be filtered and further customized for easier use; see Customized Screen Views (page 39). 4 Always configure inventory scanners with Ascend's recommended settings - this ensures incompatible barcode labels are found as soon as they are scanned, making it easier to identify and re-label the product; see Prepare for Physical Inventory > One Day Prior > Configure Recommended Settings(page 12). 5 Use the products scanned before and after the barcode which was not recognized to determine the product in question. To locate the item within the scan file: Open the scan file using a text editing program, e.g. Microsoft Notepad - count results are displayed in the format <Quantity>,<Barcode>. Navigate to the beginning of the file by pressing [Ctrl]+[Home] on the keyboard. Select the Edit menu > Find. In the Find What field, enter the original barcode scanned. Click [Find Next]. 6 Multi-Store Dealers: Add and modify products only at the primary location. Perform a manual Data Exchange at all locations to receive the updated information / 45 -

24 c. Select the Edit menu > Replace. The Replace dialog box is displayed. d. In the Find What field, enter the original barcode scanned. e. In the Replace With field, enter the correct UPC/SKU. f. Click [Find Next]. g. Verify the selected text exactly matches the barcode to correct. h. Click [Replace]. i. Continue clicking [Find Next] to ensure all instances of the product were found. j. When the product is no longer found in the text, click [Cancel]. k. From the File menu, select Save. l. Exit Microsoft Notepad. 2. Re-import the scan files; see Import Scan Files (page 21). X Cross match SKU/UPC Multiple product records were assigned the same UPC and SKU (e.g. a helmet was assigned a SKU which is also assigned as a UPC for a saddle). To resolve: 1. Double-click the scanned item to access the Remove Duplicate Products Feature (page 33). X Duplicate SKU/UPC Multiple product records were assigned the same UPC or SKU (e.g. a helmet and a saddle were assigned the same UPC). To resolve: 1. Double-click the scanned item to access the Remove Duplicate Products Feature (page 33). Non-Inventory A non-inventory item was scanned, e.g. a labor SKU was scanned. To resolve: If the product's quantity in stock must be tracked, disable the non-inventory option. a. Double-click the scanned item to access the Product Editor. b. From the Properties section, disable the Non Inventory Item option. c. Click [Save]. If the product's quantity in stock does not required tracking, remove it from the current reconciliation. a. Right-click the product. b. From the displayed menu, select Remove. Not in a Selected Category Product is not assigned to a category / 45 -

25 To resolve: 1. Categorize the product. a. Double-click the scanned item to access the Product Editor. b. From the Category drop-down menu, select the desired category. c. Click [Save]. Cost equals $0.00 Product does not have a cost configured. If the product is sold in its current state, it will reflect a potentially inaccurate margin. To resolve: 1. Double-click the scanned item to access the Product Editor. 2. In the Estimated Cost field, enter the correct cost for the product Click [Save]. Cost greater than MSRP Product's configured MSRP is less than its cost. If the product is sold in its current state, it will reflect a negative margin. To resolve: 1. Double-click the scanned item to access the Product Editor. 2. Enter the following as required: MSRP Estimated Cost 2 3. Click [Save]. Not Scanned Product has a quantity on hand in the system, but is not included in the scan file. If no action is taken, quantity on unscanned products is set to zero when the file(s) is reconciled. To resolve: 1. Investigate why the displayed products, especially those of high value, were not scanned during the inventory count. For example, did an employee forget to count bikes in storage, is the item labeled incorrectly, was the item stolen, etc. Take the appropriate action: 1 If the product was incorrectly received without a cost, its Average Cost must be manually re-calculated; see Manually Re-Calculate Average Cost (page 37). 2 This discrepancy may be caused by an incorrectly configured Divide By on case quantity items; for details on proper configuration for these products, and steps to correct their cost, see Manage Case Quantity Products (page 35) / 45 -

26 If the product is in the store and is not committed to a customer, enter the correct quantity in stock in the New Qty column. If the product is a special order item for a customer, verify the Quantity column exactly matches the sum of the SO - Not Ordered and SO - On Order columns. Special order items have a legitimate negative inventory quantity until they are received on a vendor order. If the product is no longer in the store, do nothing. The product's quantity will be set to zero when your count is reconciled. Inventory Change The scanned quantity does not match the quantity stored in Ascend. The Difference column displays the amount of change in dollars. To resolve: 1. Determine whether all instances of the displayed products, especially those of high value, were accounted for during the inventory count. For example, did an employee forget to count bikes in storage, were some items labeled incorrectly, etc. Take the appropriate action: If items were missed during scanning, enter the correct quantity in stock in the New Qty column. If it is verified that all instances were scanned, do nothing. The product's quantity will be set to the scan quantity when your count is reconciled. Next Steps Continue on to Finalize the Count (next page) / 45 -

27 Finalize The Count After investigating and correcting discrepancies in your count results, reconcile the values with your Ascend system and accounting software. Archive your final results for future reference. Skip to Section Reconcile Inventory (below) Archive Results (below) Reconcile with Accounting Software (next page) Determine Shrink Amount (next page) Additional Resources VIDEOS View the following training videos (available on Reconcile Inventory Inventory reconciliation cannot be undone. Do not reconcile your count results until you are comfortable accepting the displayed changes. Do not exit the Reconcile Inventory screen prior to reconciling. Changes made to New Qty without reconciling are not saved. 1. After all discrepancies are resolved, click [Reconcile]. A confirmation prompt is displayed. 2. Click [Yes]. The Print Inventory by Category Summary Report prompt is displayed. After clicking [Reconcile], the values in the Old Qty column are overwritten with the values in the New Qty column. 1 New Qty column: Quantity stored in your imported count results file. Old Qty column: Quantity currently stored in Ascend. Archive Results 1. Print the inventory report. Be sure to file this report for future reference. Ascend does not track historical inventory values. 1. On the Print Inventory by Category Summary Report prompt, click [Yes]. 2. The Print Document dialog box is displayed. 3. Click [Print]. 4. Label the printout Final Inventory Dollars. 5. File the printout in a location it can easily be retrieved. 6. From the Reconcile Inventory screen, click [Back]. 1 This process can take several minutes to complete / 45 -

28 2. Back up your Ascend system. 1 Reconcile With Accounting Software 1. Locate the Final Inventory Dollars report printout. 2. On the last page of the printout, locate the Gross Inventory value. Compare this value to the balance of your inventory account in your accounting software. Determine Shrink Amount 1. Save the Physical Inventory Count- Inventory Adjustments for Shrink query to your computer's Desktop. Download this query from 2. Open the query file (text file) in Microsoft Notepad. 3. Select the Edit menu > Select All. 4. Select the Edit menu > Copy. 5. From the Ascend Desktop, select the Tools menu > Advanced Database Functions > SQL Query. 6. From the SQL Query screen, right-click in the upper pane. 7. From the displayed menu, select Paste. 8. On the toolbar, click [Execute(F8)]. The Select Dates dialog box is displayed. 9. From the Select Dates dialog box: From field: Select the date after your last physical inventory. To field: Select the date of the your current physical inventory. 10. Click [OK]. The query results are displayed in the lower pane of the SQL Query screen. 11. Select the File menu > Export. The Save SQL Query File As dialog box is displayed. 12. Select the location where you are saving physical inventory results. 13. In the File Name field, enter a descriptive name. 14. Click [Save]. A confirmation prompt is displayed. 15. Click [Yes]. The query results are opened with Microsoft Excel. 16. Select the first empty cell at the end of the Monetary Change column. 17. Select the [Home] tab. 18. Click [AutoSum] twice. All values in the column are totaled. This value is your total Shrink Dollars for the year. 19. From the SQL Query screen, click [Back]. The Reports screen is redisplayed. 20. From the Folders pane, expand the Sales folder. 21. Select the Sales by Category Summary report. 22. From the Date Range Selector on the toolbar: From field: Select the date after your last physical inventory count. To field: Select the date of the your current physical inventory count. Select the same date range as was used for the Physical Inventory Count- Inventory Adjustments for Shrink query (step 9 above). 1 See System Setup and Settings > Creating Backups / 45 -

29 23. From the toolbar, click [Refresh]. The Sales by Category Summary report is displayed. 24. Locate the Subtotals value under the Sales column. This value is your total pre-tax Sales Dollars amount for the year. 25. Divide your Shrink Dollars amount by your Sales Dollars amount. When multiplied by 100, the result is your shrink percentage for the year. 1 1 Best Practice: Do not exceed 1% for a 12-month period / 45 -

30 Appendix A: System Setup: Inventory Counts Specific configurations must be completed before using the inventory count features in Ascend. Skip to Section Users (below) Settings & Options (below) Users The following user permissions are recommended for each employee role: 1 Product Investigator: Products/Vendor Products Adding Products/Vendor Products Modifying Products/Vendor Products Viewing Reconciler: Allow Commands in SQL Query Window Import/Export Data Products/Vendor Products Adding Products/Vendor Products Modifying Products/Vendor Products Viewing Reports Settings & Options The following system options must be configured: Report Options: In order to print inventory reports, a report printer must be configured in Ascend. 2 1 For details on assigning permissions to your employees, see General Operations > User Management > Assigning Permissions. For details on each permission, see General Operations > User Management > Permission Definitions. 2 See System Setup and Settings > Options > Reports Options / 45 -

31 Appendix B: Audit Product Labels During a product label audit, each and every product label is scanned using an inventory scanner. While scanning, verify that each product label is: Physically attached to the correct product. Correctly entered in your Ascend system. Is able to be read by the inventory scanner. A label audit reduces the time spent addressing unscannable product labels during inventory counts. Skip to Section Prepare for Your Label Audit (below) Prepare the Inventory Scanner (below) Audit Product Labels (next page) Prepare For Your Label Audit Determine the dates of your label audit: A label audit can be spread across several days. Select a time when the store is slower and ample staff is available. Audit product labels systematically: Scan product labels in logical groupings, e.g. by category or inventory store section. Prepare your inventory scanner: See below. Prepare The Inventory Scanner 1. Place the inventory scanner in the cradle. 2. From the Ascend Desktop, select the Tools menu > Create Handheld Device Product File. 3. From the displayed menu, select your export preference: 1 Export Active Products 2 Only: Export only those products which have history in your system. Export All Products: Export all products which exist in your system and are not hidden (removed). 4. When an inventory scanner is connected to the computer, the Handheld Device Detected prompt is displayed. Click [Yes]. 5. When the Process Complete prompt is displayed, click [OK]. The product file is copied to the following location: 3 Windows XP 4 : My Computer > Mobile Device > Storage Card Windows 7: Computer > WindowsCE > Storage Card 1 Best Practice: In order to reduce time spent investigating products which do not scan, export all products to the inventory scanner. 2 An "active" product in your system meets at least one of the following criteria: Qty is not 0 (including negative values), or Inventory Adjustments/Multi-Store Transfers (including pending and denied requests)/order Items (including those on incomplete orders) /Sales Items (including those on incomplete transactions) exist 3 To manually transfer the product file to the inventory scanner later (e.g. the inventory scanner is not currently connected), see Manually Transfer the Product File (page 38). 4 Windows XP will no longer be supported after April 8, See the Ascend RMS Blog entry at for details / 45 -

32 Windows 8: Computer > WindowsCE > Storage Card 6. If the Load Product File to Memory prompt is displayed, press [ENT] (MC1000 model)/ [Enter] (MC2180 model) on the keypad to close this prompt. Audit Product Labels 1. Press [1] to enter the Scan screen. The following message is displayed: Scanner Ready. 2. Point the inventory scanner at a product label. 3. Press the yellow button to scan the label. The inventory scanner emits an audible status alert: High Tone Beep: The product label exists in Ascend. Verify the following: The label is attached to the correct product. The label's product description is correct. The label's price (MSRP) is correct. Low Tone Beep: The product label does not exist in Ascend. Take one of the following actions: If the product already exists in Ascend with different labeling information, print a new label for the product. 1 If the product does not exist in Ascend, add the product to Ascend. Then, print a new label for the product Pay close attention to products ordered in case quantities. These products have different UPCs on the case and the individual item. For details on configuring these products, see Manage Case Quantity Products (page 35). 2 See Inventory Management > Product Management > Product Information > Add and Modify Products. 3 Multi-Store Dealers: Add and modify products only at the primary location. Perform a manual Data Exchange at all locations to receive the updated information / 45 -

33 Appendix C: Remove Duplicate Products Feature The Remove Duplicate Products feature locates products that were assigned identical UPCs or SKUs, and therefore, considered to be identical products in your system. A UPC or SKU is a product's unique identifier and cannot be shared by two products. Skip to Section Begin Removing Duplicate Products (below) Duplicate Products are Identical (below) Duplicate Products are Unique (next page) Begin Removing Duplicate Products 1. From the Ascend Desktop, select the Tools menu > Advanced Database Functions > Remove Duplicate In-Store Products. The Remove Duplicate Products dialog box is displayed. 2. Select one of the following search parameters: SKU Only UPC Only Cross match 1 All The first set of products with identical UPCs (or SKUs) is displayed Take one of the following actions: Duplicate Products are Identical (below): If you determine the set of products be identical, merge the products together. Duplicate Products are Unique (next page): If the products are not identical, assign a different UPC (or SKU) to one of the products. Duplicate Products Are Identical If the displayed duplicate products are identical, merge them together: 1. Select the duplicate product with the least accurate information. 2. Click [Merge]. 3. From the displayed products, select the corresponding duplicate product with the most accurate information. 4. Click [Merge]. The Merge Items prompt is displayed. 5. Click [Yes]. The products are merged together. 1 Multiple product records were assigned the same UPC and SKU (e.g. a helmet was assigned a SKU which is also assigned as a UPC for a saddle). 2 The total number of duplicate products in your system is displayed in the lower left corner / 45 -

34 Quantity of the first product selected is added to the second product selected. The second product's details (Description, Cost, MSRP) are retained. Vendor Products assigned to each product are retained. 6. Click [Refresh] to display the next set of duplicate products. 1 2 Duplicate Products Are Unique If the displayed products are unique, assign a different UPC (or SKU) to the product: 1. Double-click the product that requires a new, unique UPC (or SKU). The Product Editor is displayed. 2. If the UPC currently entered for the product is incorrect, enter the correct UPC in the UPC field. If a unique SKU is required, enter a new SKU in the In-Store SKU field When required, print new labels for the affected product(s). 1 To resolve a problem with a specific UPC (or SKU), select the desired UPC (or SKU) from the Product drop-down menu. 2 The total number of duplicate products remaining in your system is displayed in the lower left corner. 3 To have Ascend generate a new unique SKU for the product, click [New] (located next to the In-Store SKU field) / 45 -

35 Appendix D: Manage Case Quantity Products Management must ensure that case quantity products are properly configured and ordered. Skip to Section Configure Products Ordered by the Case (below) Order Products by the Case (next page) Additional Resources ASCEND UNIVERSITY Complete the following training modules (available on auonline.ascendrms.com): Ordering > Managing Case Quantity Items Configure Products Ordered By The Case For products ordered by the case, ensure the following information is correctly configured: Description: Verify the product description does not contain case quantity information, e.g. 12PK. This description must describe the individual items in the case. 1 MSRP: Enter the MSRP for an individual item. UPC: Enter the UPC on the case (in which individual items are packaged). In-Store SKU: Enter the UPC for an individual item (individual items are packaged in a case). Divide By: Enter the number of items in the case. 2 1 If desired, case quantity can be entered as part of the vendor product description. 2 In order for the individual items to be received correctly, the product's Divide By field must be properly configured before receiving the case. If Divide By was incorrectly configured during receiving, Average Cost cannot be calculated correctly by the system. If a product's Average Cost is incorrect, the reported Margin is also incorrect (Margin = MSRP minus Average Cost, divided by MSRP, and multiplied by 100). When the Divide By was entered incorrectly at receiving, the product's Average Cost and Margin must be recalculated manually; see Manually Re-Calculate Average Cost (page 37) / 45 -

36 Order Products By The Case When ordering products by the case, add the required number of cases to the order. When the case(s) is received, the number of individual items received is automatically recorded in inventory. 1 1 In order for the individual items to be received correctly, the product's Divide By field must be properly configured before receiving the case. If Divide By was incorrectly configured during receiving, Average Cost cannot be calculated correctly by the system. If a product's Average Cost is incorrect, the reported Margin is also incorrect (Margin = MSRP minus Average Cost, divided by MSRP, and multiplied by 100). When the Divide By was entered incorrectly at receiving, the product's Average Cost and Margin must be recalculated manually; see Manually Re-Calculate Average Cost (page 37) / 45 -

37 Appendix E: Manually Re-Calculate Average Cost When a product is received without a cost, or is incorrectly received without a cost, its Average Cost must be manually re-calculated in order to adjust its margin when sold. Before beginning, see Inventory Management > Inventory Adjustments > System Setup: Inventory Adjustments to verify your system is properly set up. Margin is not updated on past sales transactions and sales reports. Past sales transactions were marked as completed in the system and cannot be updated. Within Product Editor 1. Click [Adjust]. 2. In the Adjustment Type field, select Other. 3. In the Action field, select Decrease. 4. In the Unit Cost field, accept the default value. 5. In the Qty Change field, enter the product's current quantity on hand. 6. In the Comments field, enter the purpose for the adjustment (e.g. Divide By field incorrectly set at receiving, Received at incorrect cost). 7. Click [Save]. 8. Repeat steps 1-6 to create a new inventory adjustment to add the product(s) back into inventory. 9. In the Action field, select Increase. 10. In the Unit Cost field, enter the cost for an individual item. 11. In the Qty Change field, enter the correct quantity on hand for the product. 12. Repeat steps to set the rest of the attributes for the inventory adjustment / 45 -

38 Appendix F: Manually Transfer The Product File A product file for the inventory scanner can be created even if the scanner is not currently connected to the computer. It can then be manually transferred to the scanner at a later time. Skip to Section Create Product File (below) Transfer Product File (below) Create Product File 1. If a scanner is connected to the computer: From the Handheld Device Detected prompt, click [No]. 2. When the Process Complete prompt is displayed, click [OK]. 3. The following directory is displayed: Windows XP 1 : C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Ascend Windows 7: C:\ProgramData\Ascend\Export Windows 8: C:\ProgramData\Ascend\Export Transfer Product File 1. Right-click the indata.txt file > select Copy. 2. Navigate to the following location: Windows XP 2 : My Computer > Mobile Device > Storage Card Windows 7: Computer > WindowsCE > Storage Card Windows 8: Computer > WindowsCE > Storage Card 3. Select the Edit menu > Paste. 4. If the ActiveSync may need to convert files prompt is displayed, click [OK]. 5. When the Replace File prompt is displayed, click [Yes] / 45 -

39 Appendix G: Customized Screen Views Several Ascend screens allow the user to temporarily customize their view of the displayed grid results. Multiple customization options can be applied. 1 Skip to Section Sort by Column (below) Move Column(s) (next page) Group by Column (page 41) Re-size Column(s) (page 42) Apply a Filter (page 42) Advanced Filters (page 43) Printing & Exporting (page 44) Sort By Column Sort by a column. 1. Right-click the required column heading. 2. From the displayed menu, select the required sort order: Sort Ascending o Numbers:The lowest value is displayed at the top of the list, e.g. 1 to 10. o Letters: Text is displayed in alphabetical order, e.g. A to Z. Sort Descending o Numbers: The highest value is displayed at the top of the list, e.g. 10 to 1. o Letters: Text is displayed in reverse alphabetical order, e.g. Z to A. Sort by Absolute Value Ascending Numbers: The highest value is displayed at the top of the list, e.g. 1 to 10. Positive/negative status is ignored, e.g. 10 and -10/(10) are treated as the same number. Letters: Text is displayed in reverse alphabetical order, e.g. A to Z. Positive/negative status is ignored, e.g. 10 and -10/(10) are treated as the same number. Sort by Absolute Value Descending Numbers: The highest value is displayed at the top of the list, e.g. 10 to 1. Positive/negative status is ignored, e.g. 10 and -10/(10) are treated as the same number. Letters: Text is displayed in reverse alphabetical order, e.g. Z to A. Positive/negative status is ignored, e.g. 10 and -10/(10) are treated as the same number. 1 Available customization options vary by screen / 45 -

40 Remove sort order. 1. Right-click the required sorted column header. 1 From the displayed menu, select Clear Sorting. Move Column(s) Reorder columns. 1. Click+Drag the required column header to a new location. Remove a column. 1. Right-click the required column header. 2. From the displayed menu, select Remove This Column. 2 Restore a removed column. 1 Sorted columns are identified by a small triangle icon: Upward Arrow Icon = Ascending, Downward Arrow Icon = Descending 2 Columns can also be removed by: Click+Drag the required column header to the toolbar / 45 -

41 1. Right-click any column header. 2. From the displayed menu, select Column Chooser. The Customization dialog box is displayed. 3. From the Customization dialog box, double-click the required column header. The column is returned to its default position. 1 Group By Column Group by a column. 1. Right-click the required column header. 2. From the displayed menu, select Group By This Column Click the triangle icon to view the grouped items. Expand all groups. 1. Right-click anywhere in the Grouping Target (located below the toolbar). 2. From the displayed menu, select Full Expand. The individual items included in each group are displayed. Collapse all groups. 1. Right-click anywhere in the Grouping Target (below the toolbar). 2. From the displayed menu, select Full Collapse. The individual items included in each are hidden. Remove all groups. 1. Right-click a blank area in the Grouping Target (below the toolbar). 2. From the displayed menu, select Clear Grouping. 1 To restore a column to a specific position: From the Column Chooser, Click+Drag the required column header to the required location. 2 Columns can also be grouped by: Click+Drag the required column header to the Grouping Target (located below the toolbar) / 45 -

42 Remove a specific group. 1. In the Grouping Target (below the toolbar), right-click the required column header. 2. From the displayed menu, select UnGroup. Re-size Column(s) Re-size all columns to longest field length. 1. Right-click any column header. 2. From the displayed menu, select Best Fit (all columns). Re-size a single column to longest field length. 1. Right-click the required column header. 2. From the displayed menu, select Best Fit. Re-size a single column to a specific size. 1. Move the cursor to the end of the required column header. A double-ended arrow is displayed. 2. Click+Drag to the required column size. Apply A Filter Filter by a single column. 1. From the required column header, click the Filter Icon / 45 -

43 2. From the displayed menu, select the required filter. 1 Filter across multiple columns. 1. Right-click any column header. 2. From the displayed menu, select Show Auto Filter Row. A blank row is displayed below the column headers. 3. Enter the required search parameters. Remove a filter. 1. Right-click the required filtered column header. 2. From the displayed menu, select Clear Filter. 2 Advanced Filters An advanced filter allows you to apply multiple conditions, e.g. Work Orders which have a specific Status but do not have a balance due. Build an advanced filter. 1 Previously selected filters are displayed at the top of the list. 2 After a filter is applied, it can also be removed. At the bottom of the displayed search results, click [x] next to the required filter / 45 -