What is trusted inventory data?

Trusted inventory data is a live, accurate and connected view of your stock levels, supplier performance and sales activity — drawn directly from your ERP without manual reconciliation. When your inventory data is trusted, your purchasing team knows exactly how much stock they have and how long it will last. Your finance team can see how inventory decisions affect cash flow and margins. And your supplier conversations are grounded in real performance data, not estimates or assumptions.

Why is inventory data so often unreliable in distribution businesses?

Most distribution businesses draw data from multiple disconnected systems — their ERP, warehouse management system, individual spreadsheets built by different teams, and supplier reports that arrive days or weeks late. When this data isn’t connected in one place, teams end up working from different versions of the truth. The result is slow decisions, stock surprises and supplier relationships that are harder to manage. Our 2026 research found that only 31% of distributors have high trust in their own inventory data.

How does Phocas help me track DIFOT and supplier performance?

Phocas pulls delivery data directly from your ERP to calculate on-time-in-full (DIFOT) rates across your supplier network in real time. You can filter by supplier, product class, warehouse or time period — and set automated weekly reports to flag underperforming suppliers for your purchasing team. This means supplier performance issues get caught before they become stock problems, not after they’ve already cost you a customer.

How does trusted inventory data connect to financial performance?

Inventory is often the largest asset on a distributor’s balance sheet, so how it’s managed directly impacts cash flow, margins and profitability. Phocas connects inventory data to your financial statements so you can see exactly how purchasing decisions flow through to your P&L, cash flow and balance sheet — in real time. When your inventory and finance teams work from the same data, decisions are faster and the financial consequences are immediately visible.

Why is Phocas a useful all-in-one platform for inventory management?

Phocas brings together six connected products, all built on data pulled directly from your ERP, so every team that touches inventory is working from the same numbers. Analytics gives your purchasing team a live stock view — weeks of cover, DIFOT rates and slow movers — all in real time. Financial Statements connects inventory decisions to your P&L, cash flow and balance sheet so finance can see the impact immediately. Budgets & Forecasts lets purchasing and finance plan together from the same data. Rebates tracks supplier rebate performance alongside DIFOT and lead time data so you can see the true value of every supplier relationship. Insights adds a customer demand layer — using RFM analysis to surface which customer segments are growing, at risk or lapsing, so stock decisions are driven by actual buying patterns, not assumptions. CRM closes the loop between sales and inventory: your sales reps walk into every customer conversation knowing what's been ordered, what's in stock and what delivery performance looks like — no disconnected tools, no last-minute data scrambling. Everything connects. No spreadsheets, no manual data pulls, no version conflicts.

Inventory data

Inventory data you can actually trust

Inventory is a distributors biggest asset. Yet most businesses manage it on data they can't fully trust – numbers that are days old, manually reconciled and spread across disconnected systems. Distributors that fix their data protect margins, hold suppliers accountable and stop firefighting.

One connected inventory view changes everything.

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What it means to really know your stock

Trusted inventory data is an up-to-date, connected view of what you have, how it's moving and how your suppliers are performing. Yet only 31% of distributors say they have high trust in their inventory data.* When the numbers aren't reliable, every decision downstream is compromised — from purchasing to pricing to the conversations you have with suppliers. So what does getting it right actually look like?

*Inventory Trends in Wholesale Distribution Report 2026

A single source of trusted data

When purchasing, sales and finance all work from the same live inventory data, manual spreadsheet reconciliation stops. No more conflicting numbers and chasing updates.

An up-to-date stock position

Know exactly how many weeks of cover you have for every product line — by warehouse, supplier or product group — based on actual sales history. Not last month's export.

Supplier visibility that works

Track DIFOT and lead time accuracy in real time across your supplier network. Identify underperforming suppliers before their problems become your customer's problem.

Why inventory data can be hard to trust

Source: Inventory Trends in Wholesale Distribution Report 2026

Disconnected systems

When your ERP, spreadsheets and reports tell different stories, every decision becomes a debate about whose numbers are right. In volatile supply chains, that debate costs you margin.

No visibility on supplier delivery

Only 41% of distributors track DIFOT, despite its direct link to customer satisfaction and lost sales. Without delivery performance data you can rely on, supplier conversations stay transactional and stock problems stay hidden until it's too late.

Spreadsheets filling the gaps

When your ERP can't answer the question quickly, someone builds a spreadsheet. Then another. Then a third. Before long, nobody knows which version is current, or whether any of them are right.

Decisions made on gut feel

63% of distributors say they lose sales by not having the right stock. Without reliable data on what's moving and what isn't, you're reacting to problems rather than preventing them.

Know your stock position

View weeks of cover for every product line at current sales rates, filtered by warehouse, product group or supplier in seconds.
Identify slow movers and excess stock before they tie up cash or become write-offs.
Monitor DIFOT rates across your entire supplier network – automatically calculated from your ERP data.
Set automated alerts when stock drops below thresholds or suppliers miss delivery targets.
Give every team a shared view so purchasing and finance are always working from the same numbers.

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Top 3 outcomes of trusted data

87%

of distributors say accurate data helps them manage supplier performance better

34%

reduction in inventory costs for distributors with accurate planning data

24%

improvement in service levels for distributors with accurate data

Source: Inventory Trends in Wholesale Distribution Report 2026

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From trusted data to smarter demand planning

Connected data: Pull sales, purchasing and inventory data from your ERP into one view
Forecast demand: Plan expected sales by supplier, product class or SKU using sales history and forecasts
Project stock levels: Automatically calculate opening stock, planned sales, purchases and EOM balances
Spot risks early: See when stock will run low or go negative so you can act fast
Plan orders with confidence: Use supplier lead times to know exactly when to place purchase orders

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From trusted data to smarter demand planning

One platform. Every inventory insight

Trusted inventory data starts with a single, clean connection to your ERP. Phocas Analytics is the foundation — pulling sales, purchasing and stock into one live view that every team can rely on. Everything else builds from there: connecting inventory decisions to your financial statements, purchasing plans, supplier rebates and beyond.

Frequently asked questions

Understand the past, operate better today, and plan well for the future

Whether you want to get your data organized for your team or you’re looking to combine business intelligence capabilities with financial reporting, planning and forecasting… We can help.