Inventory is a serious subject

ow good was your last inventory?

Even more important, how good will the next one be?

There's not much you can do about the one you just took. That's already in the past, and whatever has happened has been recorded, put in a time capsule and, in most cases, hopefully, forgotten by everyone but the IRS.

The time to prepare for inventory is not posthumously but prior to its taking. A five-minute training seminar with a bunch of people who could care less is a sorry start and the obvious forerunner of a conclusion as to what will eventually happen

By Ken Thim

Aulhor'f hirn is a frequent contributor to The Merc'hent Maguzine. A longtirtre inclustry tnetnber, he is etnployed by Genslar Building Materisls in l-os Angeles, Ca. - ed.

when some other disinterested and unconcerned people start recording, checking, extending, etc.

Conscientious is a four-syllable word found only in a Webster's or a Funk and Wagnall's. This observer has yet to see anyone excited and enthralled about the starting of an inventory. But the numbers are legion of those who can't wait to finish one. Impatience and lack of interest are staunch allies of inventory participants. The worst thing one could do would be to reward those who finished earliest. Rather, it would be far better to issue the merit badges to the ones who did it correctly even if it took a little longer and cost a trifle more.

The best possible time to prepare for an inventory is at the completion of one. Preparation is the key. Maintenance and order are the principal ingredients.

Use this list for starters and feel