Clarification details
Updated December 2016. This document has been updated to address issues that have arisen from moderation.
General
The processing and the report need to be based on one entity. The use of an authentic local entity is likely to better engage students. In this case, processing transactions should be re-contextualised from TKI tasks. The nature of the entity (that is, the industry it operates in) will determine the relevance of elements of the inventory subsystem.
The processing requirements of the standard are listed in Explanatory Note (EN) 2. It is sufficient for students to demonstrate their processing skills by completing one FIFO or WAC inventory card. EN5 lists the inventory elements that could be described, explained or justified in the report where they are relevant to the entity.
Where an element is not relevant to the context, students are not expected to discuss it. For example, constant stock rotation will be of relevance to a food retailer, but less relevant for an appliance store.
Generic knowledge of inventory subsystems
Purpose statements and theoretical/generic statements describing, explaining or justifying best practice within inventory subsystems do not provide evidence for the standard. Strengths, weakness and recommendations for improving the inventory subsystem may provide a context for students, but do not contribute any evidence for the standard.
Merit and Excellence grades
In-depth reports explain how or why certain practices are used in the entity. Comprehensive reports make links back to specific transactions in the processing, and provide clarity as to why that aspect of the subsystem is relevant in the entity. This is because processing is a part of an entity's overall system and should enable the end-user to assess the efficiency of an entity’s subsystem.
For example, a report on a fashion store may focus particularly on checking inventory received and stocktaking, as the manager may consider these most important. In response to the manager’s statement that ‘customers do not always return clothes to correct racks’, students should investigate this further and discuss:
a) what inventory checking and/or stocktaking methods are performed
b) how or why inventory received is checked and stocktaking performed this way
c) the significance of doing a) and b) above, and how these are linked to the processing records and help the entity to continue to trade in the future.
This standard sits in the Systems strand of the matrix. While students must demonstrate skill in processing, their grades will be based on how well they describe, explain or justify relevant elements of the subsystem.