The Hidden Power of Good Faith Receiving and Pick Accuracy Auditing
In today’s retail and supply chain landscape, accuracy is no longer a competitive advantage; it’s a survival requirement. Every pallet received, every case counted, and every order picked is a link in an increasingly complex operational chain. What many businesses overlook, however, is that these “routine” activities are often the very points where inefficiencies, inaccuracies, and losses quietly take root.
Two processes in particular have become central to supply chain performance: Good Faith Receiving and Pick Accuracy auditing. They sit at opposite ends of the warehouse journey, inbound and outbound, yet their impact reverberates across stock file integrity, cost control, customer experience, and ultimately profitability. The intricacies of these processes reveal far more than whether quantities match paperwork; they expose behaviours, system weaknesses, supplier performance issues, and operational blind spots that traditional metrics do not capture.
This is where RGIS, with decades of auditing expertise and purpose-built methodologies, deliver unique value. Not through theoretical consultancy, but through precise, on-the-ground, independent verification that substitutes assumption with evidence.
Good Faith Receiving: The Inbound Gatekeeper
Good Faith Receiving (GFR) rests on a simple principle: stores and warehouses accept deliveries based on trust unless something obvious appears wrong. It’s an efficient operational model, until it isn’t.
The reality is that trust without verification introduces risk. Discrepancies in inbound deliveries are rarely deliberate; more often, they stem from rushed loading, supplier process inconsistencies, data transfer errors, or transport damage. Yet every unit that arrives incorrectly sets off a chain reaction: inaccurate stock files, replenishment errors, unexpected gaps on shelves, purchasing distortions, and unnecessary shrinkage. This is where independent Good Faith Receiving audits become essential.
How GFR Auditing Truly Works
While many believe GFR audits are simply about recounting inbound deliveries, the value is in the detail behind the count. Effective audits:
- Validate quantities against supplier manifests, delivery notes, and ASN (Advance Shipping Notices).
- Identify variances such as oversupply, short supply, substitutions, damaged goods, and mislabelled packaging.
- Track recurring patterns, identifying suppliers or routes where issues persist.
- Provide evidence-based reports that support chargebacks, dispute management, and supplier performance improvements.
- Feed operational fixes, highlighting procedural gaps at Goods In, such as mismatch handling or lack of control checks.
The real complexity lies in understanding why inaccuracies happen in the first place. A well-run GFR audit shouldn’t just highlight variances; it should help stop them from recurring. This is where RGIS adds real value. We recognise that receiving is more than a counting exercise; it is a rich source of data and behavioural insight. By combining experienced auditors, technology-led validation and the ability to analyse variance across thousands of deliveries, RGIS provides retailers and distributors with a level of visibility and root-cause understanding that is extremely difficult to replicate in-house.
Pick Accuracy: The Outbound Precision Engine
If Good Faith Receiving is the gatekeeper of inbound accuracy, Pick Accuracy is the guardian of outbound reliability. Even the most perfectly maintained stock file collapses in value if the wrong items leave the warehouse. Mis-picks and short-picks do not simply create operational friction; they directly impact customer satisfaction, delivery SLA performance, cost-to-serve, and brand reputation. But achieving high pick accuracy is not as simple as measuring error rates. The process is affected by layout, SKU complexity, equipment, team training, shift patterns, and human behaviour.
The Anatomy of a Pick Accuracy Audit
A robust Pick Accuracy audit does far more than confirm whether the picker selected the right SKU. It evaluates:
- Live or sample-based verification of picked orders, validating quantity, product, and pack size.
- Process compliance, examining whether pickers follow pick sheets, handheld prompts, or voice instructions correctly.
- Root-cause categorisation is the error due to the picker, location, labelling, system, or operational design?
- Performance trends, not only by team but often by individual picker, shift, or product category.
- Systemic gaps, such as poor pick slot accuracy, confusing bin locations, inadequate signage, or mobile device usability issues.
Pick Accuracy audits serve as a diagnostic tool, revealing where process improvements, layout adjustments, or re-training can deliver immediate accuracy gains. RGIS brings a unique advantage here: its auditors specialise in operational truth. They verify picked items not as a warehouse manager would expect, but as they actually are: unbiased, thorough, and entirely independent. Their methodology is built on decades of practical auditing experience across retail, wholesale, logistics, and e-commerce fulfilment environments.
Why RGIS Is the Leader in GFR and Pick Accuracy Auditing
While many organisations recognise the importance of these audits, few have the scale, structure, and expertise to implement them effectively and consistently. RGIS stands apart for several reasons:
- Deep, Real-World Audit Expertise
RGIS teams conduct thousands of audits every year, across multiple industries, regions, and warehouse configurations. This cumulative experience gives them a nuanced understanding of where discrepancies occur and how to detect them. - Independent, Unbiased Verification
In-house teams often cannot fully separate daily operations from impartial evaluation. RGIS brings neutrality, objectivity, and consistency essential for credible insight and supplier accountability. - Technology-Enabled Accuracy
From handheld devices to performance dashboards, RGIS leverages technology to ensure speed, precision, and transparent reporting. Their ability to integrate audit findings with client systems increases the impact of the insights. - Actionable Insight, Not Just Data
RGIS provides more than a variance report. The output includes root-cause analysis, improvement recommendations, performance trends, and clear narrative insight that operational teams can act on immediately. - Scalability and Flexibility
Whether a business needs ongoing GFR audits, periodic pick accuracy checks, or a full supply chain audit programme, RGIS can scale resources and scope without compromising quality.
The Future: Accuracy as a Strategic Differentiator
As supply chains become more automated, omnichannel-driven, and cost-sensitive, the ability to trust every unit received and every item picked is becoming a strategic differentiator. Good Faith Receiving and Pick Accuracy auditing elevate accuracy from an operational necessity to a lever for financial performance, customer satisfaction, and long-term competitiveness.
And with its unmatched combination of expertise, independence, technology, and scale, RGIS remains the partner best equipped to deliver these critical verification services.