An inventory controller owns the accuracy of your stock records: they count, reconcile, investigate differences and check what arrives at the dock. You may see the job advertised as a stock controller or an inventory control officer. This guide is for warehouse, production and operations managers deciding whether they need this role on their site, and whether to fill it permanently or with short-term cover.
What an inventory controller does in a normal week
The role works in the gap between what the system says and what is on the shelf. According to the business.gov.au guide to managing inventory, a periodic system means you count stock by hand and update a spreadsheet or paper records, while a perpetual system uses software or a point-of-sale system that updates your records automatically. Whichever system holds the record, the controller's job is to keep it matching the shelf.
A normal week usually holds five kinds of work:
- Counts. Scheduled counts of set bays or product groups, plus spot counts when something looks wrong.
- Reconciliation. Comparing each count with the system record and writing down every difference, however small.
- Investigation. Finding the cause of a difference: a missed scan, a wrong location, a mislabelled pallet or a receiving error.
- Receiving audit. Checking a sample of inbound deliveries against the paperwork before the stock is put away.
- Reporting. Giving the warehouse manager a short list of open differences, their causes and what has been corrected.
The methods, such as cycle counting and the goods receiving routine, are covered in separate guides. This one is about the person who runs them.
How the role differs from a storeperson or picker
The difference is what each person is accountable for. A picker is accountable for filling orders correctly and at pace. A storeperson is accountable for receiving, putting away and issuing stock. The controller is accountable for whether the record is right after both of them have finished.
That separation matters because people rarely find their own mistakes. A storeperson who puts a pallet in the wrong bay will not count that bay and find it. A second person with no stake in the move will.
- Picker. Works to the pick list, scans each pick and moves on. Speed and order accuracy are the measures.
- Storeperson. Handles inbound and outbound movement, operates equipment and keeps the area tidy.
- Controller. Counts, compares, investigates and corrects. Needs patience with detail and the confidence to question a record.
On a small site one person may do two of these jobs, but not on the same stock in the same hour. If the person who moves the pallet also signs off the count, nobody has checked anything. Sites adding conveyors or goods-to-person systems should also read about warehouse roles around automation, because those systems change which warehouse jobs shrink, change or grow.
Skills to look for, and how to check them
The job rewards care more than speed. Look for people who are comfortable with numbers, write clearly and stay calm when two figures disagree. System experience helps, but the habit of chasing a difference to its cause matters more. Handheld scanner skills are a separate question, and the post on testing scanner and WMS skills covers how to check them.
- Accuracy. Counts the same bay twice and gets the same number.
- Curiosity. Asks why a difference happened, not just how big it is.
- Plain reporting. Writes a finding another person can act on.
Pay and classification are set by the award or agreement that applies to your people, so check those with your adviser or the Fair Work Ombudsman before you advertise. Match any skills test to the job. The guide to pre-employment skills tests covers marking sheets, adjustments and where a demonstration ends and an unpaid trial begins.
A short count-and-reconcile exercise
This exercise takes about thirty minutes, runs with a supervisor watching and uses stock you already have. Choose one bay with a few product lines and print the system record for it. Before the candidate arrives, move one carton to another bay without logging it, so the record is wrong in a way you know, and put it back when the exercise ends.
- Count. Ask the candidate to count the bay by hand and mark the difference against the printed record.
- Find a cause. Ask where the missing stock might be and what they would check first. Watch whether they look at nearby bays, recent movements and labels, or just recount the same shelf.
- Write it up. Give them five minutes to write what they found, what they think caused it and what they would change in the record.
Score on method, not luck. A good candidate counts in a set order, records each line as they go, and writes a finding you could hand to the shift leader.
Keep the exercise short and check the Fair Work Ombudsman's position on unpaid trials before you run it with a candidate.
When to hire permanently
Hire permanently when the checking workload exists every week of the year. Write down the counts, reconciliations, investigations and receiving audits you would give the role over a normal month, and total the hours. If the total fills a regular weekly block that does not disappear in a quiet season, the job is a permanent one.
Other signs point the same way: the same stock differences keep returning, or supervisors spend their week chasing a missing pallet instead of running the floor.
Chandler Recruitment is the division of Chandler Personnel that handles permanent recruitment for a role like this. How many permanent staff your site needs overall is a separate question, and our guide to setting the permanent and casual mix shows how to work out that core from your own weekly hours.
When short-term cover is the better call
Short-term cover is the better call when the work has a start and an end. A permanent hire for a temporary load leaves you with the role after the work has gone, so match the cover to the shape of the need:
- Peak. Extra receiving audits and daily counts while volumes are high.
- Leave. A controller away for weeks and nobody who can reconcile the record.
- Shutdown. A full count before or after a planned stop in production.
- Clean-up. A backlog of unresolved differences after a system change or a move to a new site.
Chandler Services is the labour hire division of Chandler Personnel. Ask the provider to cover your count routine and location codes in the site induction, since Chandler Personnel runs site inductions on behalf of clients. A cover person also needs a supervisor who reviews their count sheets at the end of each shift. To see what the division supplies for warehouse sites, start with the page on warehousing and logistics staffing.
Related Resources
- Permanent recruitment
- Warehousing and logistics staffing
- Scanner and WMS skills
- Warehouse automation jobs
- Pre-employment skills tests
- Flexible workforce model
- Business.gov.au inventory guide
Common Questions About Hiring a Stock Controller
1. What does an inventory controller do?
The role keeps stock records matching physical stock. In a normal week that means scheduled and spot counts, reconciling each count against the system, investigating the cause of differences, auditing a sample of inbound deliveries and reporting open issues to the warehouse manager. They check the work of others rather than moving stock all day.
2. What is the difference between an inventory controller and a storeperson?
A storeperson receives, puts away and issues stock, and is accountable for the movement. The controller is accountable for whether the record is right afterwards. Keeping the two jobs separate means someone other than the person who moved the stock checks the result.
3. Does a small warehouse need a dedicated inventory controller?
Not always. If the weekly checking work adds up to only a few hours, give it to a trusted team member as a defined duty, with counts done by someone other than the person who moved the stock. If the hours fill a regular weekly block, or the same differences keep returning, a dedicated role is worth considering.
4. What skills should an inventory controller have?
Look for accuracy, curiosity about causes, clear short writing and the confidence to question a record on the floor. System experience helps and can be trained. Use a short supervised count-and-reconcile exercise with a planted mismatch to see these skills in action rather than relying on past job titles.
5. Can I use labour hire to cover an inventory controller during a shutdown or peak?
Yes, short-term cover suits a shutdown, a peak or a leave gap because the work has an end date. Brief the person on your location codes and count routine, give them a supervisor who reviews their sheets each shift, and keep the permanent role for checking that exists every week of the year.
Hire for accuracy, cover for peaks
Stock accuracy needs an owner, and the owner should not be the person who moves the stock. If the checking work fills a weekly block all year, make the role permanent. If it comes in peaks, shutdowns or clean-ups, cover it for the weeks you need it. Write down a month of counts and reconciliations this week and total the hours to see which side of the line your site is on.
