Auditing & Quality Control

Purchasing audits help maintain accuracy and accountability in your procurement process. TimberCloud provides flexible auditing tools to verify inventory counts, validate receipt accuracy, and ensure vendor compliance.

Audit Types

TimberCloud supports multiple audit types to address different verification needs:

Inventory Audit

• Verify physical inventory against system records
• Identify discrepancies in stock levels
• Location-specific counting
• Generate variance reports

Cycle Count

• Regular scheduled partial counts
• Focus on high-value or fast-moving items
• ABC analysis approach
• Continuous accuracy improvement

Full Physical

• Complete inventory count
• All items at all locations
• Typically performed annually
• Comprehensive verification

Purchase Order Audit

• Verify PO details and approvals
• Check pricing accuracy
• Validate vendor terms
• Compliance verification

Receipt Audit

• Verify received quantities
• Check for posting accuracy
• Validate cost entries
• Discrepancy investigation

Vendor Audit

• Vendor performance review
• Pricing verification
• Terms compliance check
• Quality assessment

Creating an Audit

Navigation

1. Go to Purchasing → Audits
2. Click + New Audit

Required Information

Basic Details

• Audit Type: Select the type of audit to perform
• Audit Date: When the audit is being conducted
• Location: Physical location being audited (required for most types)
• Auditor: User performing the audit (auto-fills with current user)

Type-Specific Requirements

Depending on audit type:

• Purchase Order Audit: Select the specific PO to audit
• Receipt Audit: Select the specific receipt to audit
• Vendor Audit: Select the vendor being audited

Optional Fields

• Scheduled Date: For planned future audits
• Notes: Initial notes or audit scope
• Findings: Documented observations
• Recommendations: Suggested improvements
• Corrective Actions: Required follow-up actions

Audit Workflow

Status Progression

┌─────────┐    ┌─────────────┐    ┌───────────┐    ┌──────────┐    ┌────────┐
│  Draft  │ ─▶ │ In Progress │ ─▶ │ Completed │ ─▶ │ Reviewed │ ─▶ │ Closed │
│         │    │             │    │           │    │          │    │        │
└─────────┘    └─────────────┘    └───────────┘    └──────────┘    └────────┘
     │
     ▼
┌───────────┐
│ Cancelled │
└───────────┘

Status Definitions

Performing Audits

Inventory/Cycle Count Audits

When you create an inventory or cycle count audit at a location:

1. Line Items Generated

   • System creates audit lines for each inventory item at location
   • Shows expected quantity from system
   • Provides field for actual counted quantity

2. Counting Process

   • Enter physical count for each item
   • Note any discrepancies
   • Document condition issues

3. Variance Calculation

   • System calculates difference (Counted - Expected)
   • Flags significant variances
   • Tracks variance by value

4. Resolution

   • Investigate discrepancies
   • Document findings
   • Recommend adjustments

Purchase Order Audits

Verify PO accuracy and compliance:

1. PO Selection

   • Choose the purchase order to audit
   • System loads PO details and lines

2. Verification Points

   • Approval chain followed
   • Pricing matches quotes
   • Terms properly applied
   • Quantities reasonable
   • Vendor selection justified

3. Documentation

   • Note any issues found
   • Record recommendations
   • Identify process improvements

Receipt Audits

Validate receiving accuracy:

1. Receipt Selection

   • Choose the receipt to audit
   • System loads receipt details

2. Verification Points

   • Quantities match packing slip
   • Items match PO specifications
   • Rejections properly documented
   • Stock transactions accurate
   • Location assignment correct

3. Documentation

   • Note discrepancies
   • Track correction needs
   • Recommend process changes

Vendor Audits

Assess vendor performance and compliance:

1. Vendor Selection

   • Choose the vendor to audit
   • System loads vendor history

2. Evaluation Areas

   • On-time delivery performance
   • Order accuracy rates
   • Quality consistency
   • Pricing competitiveness
   • Communication responsiveness
   • Terms compliance

3. Scoring and Recommendations

   • Rate performance areas
   • Document concerns
   • Recommend actions

Audit Lines

For inventory-based audits, each line captures:

Working with Audit Lines

• Enter counts directly in the grid
• Tab through fields efficiently
• Save progress frequently
• Mark lines as verified when confirmed

Audit Documentation

Findings

Document what was discovered:

• Inventory discrepancies found
• Process breakdowns identified
• Compliance issues noted
• Quality concerns observed

Recommendations

Suggest improvements:

• Process changes needed
• Training requirements
• System adjustments
• Policy updates

Corrective Actions

Track required follow-up:

• Who is responsible
• What needs to be done
• When it should be completed
• How to verify completion

Audit Reports

Variance Report

• Items with count discrepancies
• Dollar value of variances
• Variance by location
• Trend analysis

Audit Summary

• Audits completed by period
• Pass/fail rates
• Issues identified
• Actions taken

Vendor Performance

• Delivery metrics
• Quality scores
• Comparison across vendors
• Trend over time

Integration Points

Inventory

Audits are linked to:

• Specific locations for counting
• Product options for inventory items
• Discrepancy tracking and variance calculations

Purchase Orders

PO audits link to:

• Specific purchase order records
• Line-by-line verification
• Approval and compliance tracking

Receipts

Receipt audits connect to:

• Receipt transactions
• Stock transaction verification
• Receiving accuracy review

Best Practices

Planning Audits

1. Schedule Regularly: Establish audit calendar
2. Prioritize High-Value: Focus on expensive items
3. Rotate Coverage: Ensure all areas audited over time
4. Staff Appropriately: Assign trained auditors
5. Prepare Materials: Have forms and tools ready

Conducting Audits

1. Be Thorough: Don't skip steps
2. Document Everything: Note all observations
3. Remain Objective: Report facts without bias
4. Ask Questions: Investigate anomalies
5. Verify Counts: Double-check significant variances

Following Up

1. Review Promptly: Don't let audits sit
2. Assign Actions: Clear ownership of tasks
3. Set Deadlines: Specific dates for completion
4. Track Progress: Monitor action completion
5. Re-audit If Needed: Verify corrections worked

Continuous Improvement

• Analyze audit trends
• Identify systemic issues
• Update processes based on findings
• Train staff on common problems
• Celebrate improvements

Troubleshooting

Audit Lines Not Populating

• Verify location has inventory items
• Check that PO/Receipt was selected (for specific audits)
• Confirm inventory is tracked at selected location
• Refresh the page after location selection

Large Variances Found

• Recount to verify
• Check unit of measurement
• Look for pending transactions
• Review recent adjustments
• Check for location transfers

Cannot Complete Audit

• Ensure all lines are counted
• Verify required fields are filled
• Check for validation errors
• Confirm user has permission

Historical Audit Not Found

• Search by audit number
• Filter by date range
• Check status filter (may be completed)
• Verify location filter