Warehouse and Inventory Management Fundamentals Training Course

Course overview

Warehouse performance is determined by disciplined daily control: receiving stock accurately, locating it logically, replenishing pick faces before shortages occur, counting inventory before discrepancies become write-offs, and dispatching complete orders on time. When these controls are weak, organisations experience stockouts despite high inventory holdings, congested aisles, avoidable handling costs, inaccurate system records, and poor customer service. This course equips warehouse and inventory professionals to identify the operational causes behind these problems and apply practical controls that improve accuracy, flow, space utilisation, and service reliability.

Participants examine the end-to-end warehouse process, from inbound appointment planning and goods receipt through put-away, storage, replenishment, picking, packing, dispatch, returns, and inventory counting. They learn to design location systems, classify stock using ABC analysis, set reorder points and safety-stock inputs, calculate core warehouse KPIs, investigate inventory variances, and apply cycle-counting disciplines. The course also covers warehouse layout principles, slotting logic, barcode and RFID controls, warehouse management system workflows, and safe, auditable handling of stock movements.

Delivery combines instructor-led explanation with warehouse scenarios, spreadsheet calculations, process-mapping workshops, and team-based problem solving. Participants use practical templates to analyse inventory records, develop a slotting plan, build a cycle-count programme, and diagnose operational bottlenecks. Each participant leaves with a completed Warehouse and Inventory Improvement Action Plan containing baseline measures, priority control gaps, proposed KPIs, and actions that can be adapted for their own site or operation.

The programme is suited to professionals who work with stock, warehouse processes, fulfilment performance, or inventory records and need a structured operational foundation. It is particularly valuable for supervisors and analysts expected to improve day-to-day control while communicating clearly with procurement, planning, transport, finance, and customer service teams.

Course objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Map inbound-to-dispatch warehouse processes using swimlane flowcharts and control points
• Apply ABC analysis and stock segmentation to set differentiated storage and counting priorities
• Calculate inventory accuracy, stock-turn, order-fill, pick-rate, and space-utilisation KPIs
• Design a location-coding and slotting approach using velocity, cube, weight, and handling constraints
• Build a cycle-count programme with count frequencies, tolerance rules, and variance investigation steps
• Use reorder-point and safety-stock calculations to support replenishment decisions
• Diagnose receiving, put-away, picking, and dispatch errors using root-cause analysis
• Produce a warehouse and inventory improvement action plan with measures, owners, and deadlines

Benefits of attending

Target competencies

Who should attend

• Warehouse Supervisors — who need to control labour, stock accuracy, workflow, and daily service performance
• Inventory Controllers — who investigate variances and maintain reliable stock records
• Warehouse Operatives progressing to leadership — who need to understand the controls behind each warehouse activity
• Supply Chain Coordinators — who link purchasing, planning, warehousing, and customer fulfilment
• Logistics Officers — who monitor storage, dispatch, returns, and distribution readiness
• Procurement and Materials Officers — who need visibility of how purchasing decisions affect stockholding and warehouse capacity

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have basic workplace exposure to stock handling, purchasing, stores operations, order fulfilment, or inventory records. They should be comfortable reading simple stock reports and performing straightforward arithmetic such as percentages, averages, and unit conversions. Familiarity with Microsoft Excel is helpful because exercises use sorting, filtering, formulas, and pivot-style analysis, but advanced spreadsheet skills are not assumed. No prior warehouse management system experience, formal logistics qualification, statistical training, or knowledge of SAP or Oracle systems is required. Complete beginners can attend, but should expect to spend time learning common warehouse terminology and transaction flows.

Training methodology

The programme uses short instructor-led modules to establish methods, followed by applied work using warehouse layouts, stock extracts, transaction records, and operational scenarios. Participants calculate inventory and productivity measures in Excel, map material and information flows, and work in groups to resolve receiving, replenishment, and picking failures. Case discussions compare manual and WMS-supported controls, including SAP EWM and Oracle WMS Cloud workflows. Each day closes with a practical output, and the final session converts findings into a site-specific improvement action plan.

Course outline

Day 1: Warehouse operations and flow control

• Warehouse roles within the end-to-end supply chain
• Inbound, storage, fulfilment, and reverse-logistics process flows
• Swimlane process mapping for warehouse transactions
• Goods-receipt checks against purchase orders and delivery notes
• Put-away rules, directed put-away, and exception handling
• Warehouse layout zones, travel paths, and material-flow principles
• Core warehouse performance measures and daily management boards

Workshop: Participants map a congested inbound-to-dispatch process and produce a control-point map identifying delays, hand-offs, and error risks.

Day 2: Inventory records, classification, and replenishment

• Perpetual inventory records and transaction discipline
• ABC analysis using annual usage value and demand velocity
• XYZ demand variability classification
• Safety-stock inputs and reorder-point calculations
• Min-max replenishment rules and kanban triggers
• Inventory accuracy measurement and discrepancy categories
• Obsolete, slow-moving, damaged, and quarantined stock controls

Workshop: Participants analyse a stock dataset in Excel and produce an ABC classification, reorder-point schedule, and treatment plan for slow-moving items.

Day 3: Storage design, slotting, and picking performance

• Location-coding structures and bin-master data
• Fixed, random, and hybrid storage policies
• Slotting criteria using velocity, cube, weight, and compatibility
• Pick-face replenishment methods and trigger rules
• Order picking methods: discrete, batch, zone, and wave picking
• Picking accuracy controls including check digits and scan verification
• Packing, staging, loading, and dispatch reconciliation

Workshop: Participants develop a slotting and pick-face replenishment proposal for a warehouse with high travel time and recurring picking errors.

Day 4: Inventory control systems and operational measurement

• Cycle-count design by ABC class and count frequency
• Blind counts, recounts, tolerance limits, and approvals
• Root-cause analysis using five whys and fishbone diagrams
• Barcode, RFID, and GS1 identification standards
• SAP EWM inventory transactions and exception workflows
• Oracle WMS Cloud receiving, tasking, and inventory functions
• KPI dashboards for accuracy, productivity, service, and capacity

Workshop: Participants investigate a cycle-count variance case and produce a corrective-action report with causes, controls, owners, and verification measures.

Day 5: Warehouse improvement and implementation planning

• Lean waste identification in warehouse activities
• 5S application for storage locations and workstations
• Standard operating procedures for high-risk stock movements
• Labour planning using workload and productivity measures
• Warehouse safety, security, and segregation controls
• Improvement prioritisation using impact-effort matrices
• Action-plan governance, review cadence, and benefit tracking

Workshop: Participants complete and present a Warehouse and Inventory Improvement Action Plan containing KPIs, priority actions, accountable owners, and a 90-day review schedule.

Tools & standards covered

Microsoft Excel, SAP Extended Warehouse Management (SAP EWM), Oracle Warehouse Management Cloud, GS1 General Specifications

A typical training day

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in the East Africa Time zone, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

How you can take this course

Certification

Participants who complete the full five days receive the Skillset Development Certificate of Completion, stating the course title, course code, dates and delivery format — suitable for professional-development records and employer reimbursement.

Frequently asked questions