Manager's Guide to Operations Management

Inventory Management: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Inventory is defined, in simple terms, as a quantity of goods or materials on hand. This is inventory as physical items. Inventory can also be described as a record of goods or materials on hand. This is inventory as a representation of physical items.

This is the sense of “inventory” we mean when we say, “I’m going to take inventory”—unless we’re expressing an intent to pilfer. To avoid embarrassing assumptions, we can say the same thing by using “inventory” as a verb—the process of taking an inventory.

Inventory Quantity of goods or materials on hand or record of goods or materials on ...