Who is responsible for inventory in the company?

Not having a single process owner is the fastest way to end up with an inventory conducted under time pressure, incomplete sheets, and discrepancies that no one can explain. The question of who is responsible for the inventoryis therefore not just a formal matter. The reliability of asset data, compliance with accounting regulations, and an organization's ability to curb unnecessary purchases all depend on the proper division of roles.

In a medium or large organization, inventory is not the task of one person or solely the accounting department. It is a process that combines management responsibility, the work of the inventory committee, the knowledge of those using the assets, and the reconciliation of data by the finance team. Each of these roles has a different scope of action. Mixing them up leads to control gaps.

Who is responsible for the inventory according to regulations?

The head of the entity is responsible for conducting the inventory. This follows from the Accounting Act, which assigns them responsibility for fulfilling accounting duties, including the inventory of assets and liabilities. In practice, the head of the entity may be the CEO, managing director, owner, or another person in charge, depending on the organization's legal form.

If the entity is managed by a multi-member body, responsibility generally lies with all its members. An internal division of tasks may designate a person to oversee the process operationally, such as a CFO or administrative director. However, this does not relieve the head of the entity of their statutory responsibility to ensure that the inventory is planned, executed, and reconciled correctly.

This distinction is crucial. You can delegate tasks such as physical stocktaking, balance reconciliation, or document verification. You cannot effectively delegate the responsibility for ensuring the accuracy of the entire process. This also applies to situations where a company uses external support or an IT system.

Head of the entity: responsibility for framework and decisions

The task of the head of the entity is not to personally count every laptop, medical device, or piece of equipment. Their role is to create the conditions under which the process will yield a reliable result. They should approve the inventory instructions, appoint the committee, set the schedule, provide resources, and sign off on the results along with the explanation of any discrepancies.

Decisions about how to conduct the count are also made at this level. An organization managing assets across multiple locations needs a different model than an entity with a single warehouse. In the former case, particular importance is placed on centralized records, clear labeling of assets, mobile tools for scanning codes, and real-time visibility into work progress.

The head of the entity should also ensure that the inventory results are utilized, not just recorded. Disclosed surpluses, shortages, unused items, or items incorrectly assigned to a location are management information. They can indicate a risk of losing control over assets, unnecessary purchases, or the need to update procedures.

The inventory committee manages the operational process

The inventory committee is usually appointed by the head of the entity. Its composition, authority, and specific tasks should be defined in internal instructions. The committee organizes the count, coordinates the work of the counting teams, oversees the completeness of documentation, and analyzes discrepancies between the actual state and the records.

In a well-designed process, the committee does not just start working on the day of the count. It verifies the preparation of locations, the availability of asset labels, inventory lists, and the status of documentation regarding transfers, disposals, or equipment handovers. This reduces situations where the counting team has to manually determine who owns a given item and where it should be located.

The committee does not take over the statutory responsibility of the head of the entity. However, it is the owner of the process execution at the organizational level. It should document the progress of work, report obstacles, and submit proposals to management regarding the reconciliation of discrepancies and corrective actions.

Counting teams: data reliability from the field

Counting teams perform tasks directly at the locations. Their job is to determine the actual presence, quantity, condition, and identification of assets. Depending on the chosen method, they may use sheets, mobile terminals, barcodes, QR codes, or RFID technology.

The most important control principle is that individuals materially responsible for specific assets should not conduct the inventory of those assets themselves. They may participate in the count, provide explanations, and confirm the status, but the independence of the inventory team limits the risk of error or conflict of interest.

In distributed organizations, it is advisable to separate the role of the person counting from the role of the person approving the result in the system. This model creates a clear audit trail: it is known who scanned the tag, who explained the discrepancy, and who approved the change in the records.

A materially responsible person is not responsible for the entire inventory

A materially responsible person is accountable for the property entrusted to them under the terms of labor law, their employment contract, and internal regulations. This could be a warehouse manager, department head, site administrator, or an employee to whom equipment has been formally assigned. Their responsibility covers a specific scope of assets, not the entire inventory procedure of the organization.

During the inventory, such a person should provide access to the property, share information about its usage, and identify items that are temporarily moved, being serviced, or loaned to other employees. If a shortage is identified, they have the right to provide an explanation. The mere fact that a discrepancy exists does not automatically determine their financial liability—it is necessary to establish the cause and assess the circumstances.

This is especially important where equipment regularly changes users and locations. Without ongoing registration of transfers, the annual inventory becomes an attempt to reconstruct the history of the assets after many months. The cost of such work is borne by administration, finance, and operations.

The role of accounting and finance: reconciliation, not replacing the inventory

The accounting department is responsible for correctly recording the inventory results in the books. It compares inventory data with records, reconciles balances with contractors, verifies assets using document-based methods, and participates in settling discrepancies. It is accounting that ensures the result of the process is reflected in financial reporting.

This does not mean that accounting should organize the entire inventory on its own. If the finance department has to manually compile data on locations, users, and serial numbers, the problem usually lies earlier—in fragmented records and a lack of ongoing control over the asset lifecycle.

An effective division of responsibility assumes that operations provide reliable factual data, administration maintains order in the assets, and finance settles the results in accordance with regulations. A common data source shortens reconciliation time and limits the number of corrections after the inventory is closed.

How to assign responsibility in practice?

It is best to start with an inventory manual that goes beyond just indicating the date of the count. The document should clearly describe inventory methods for specific asset groups, document flow, rules for appointing teams, the process for explaining discrepancies, and the approval path for decisions.

In practice, it is worth assigning roles in the system to specific individuals: the process owner, committee members, counters, site managers, users, and those approving changes. Thanks to this, responsibility does not end with a general entry in a policy document. It is visible in daily operations and can be verified.

An asset management platform, such as the solutions developed by EXINO BUSINESS SYSTEMS, can support this model through data centralization, mobile counts, and the registration of operational history. Technology does not replace procedures or management responsibility. However, it allows for reducing manual data entry, detecting deviations faster, and closing the process based on up-to-date data.

Responsibility begins before the day of the inventory

A good inventory is not a one-time control action. It is a test of the quality of data collected throughout the year. When every asset has an owner, location, identifier, and transfer history, the inventory confirms reality instead of searching for it. This is when responsibility for the inventory translates into measurable control of costs and assets.

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