Perform physical inventory count

We are starting the physical inventory count for Warehouse 12 on Friday morning with the six-person floor team and stock control lead Javier. Count every pallet location on aisle B and C, note serial numbers for batch-tracked items, and tag any damaged goods for quarantine. Before you close the count, reconcile any aisle totals with the paper sheets and call me if a full-pallet discrepancy exceeds 10 units.

Before I release the count to procurement and finance, make it easy for them to trust the numbers: show total counted units versus system book balance at the top, highlight any SKUs with variance over 5%, and surface batch/serial mismatches and quarantined items so a reviewer can sign off without digging through sheets.

I completed aisle B and C counts; three SKUs—SKU-3471, SKU-9920, SKU-1133—each have variances over 20% and one pallet shows no corresponding receipt. I am afraid these are either mislocated or misreceived, and I cannot tell whether to trigger a recount, a location sweep, or raise a goods-received investigation. What is the most likely cause and the recommended next step given we have a physical count team available today and a receiving lead at 4pm?

Across the last six monthly counts we repeatedly lose time hunting mislocated pallets and correcting bin assignments for high-turn SKUs. The recurring cost is late month closes and strained relationships with operations. What habit should we change in our receiving and putaway handoff so fewer items drift between locations, and what single control will stop the routine searches that eat a half day each count?