In an audit or stock-take, a variance is any difference between what the records say and what the count finds. An asset can be missing, present but unrecorded, present in the wrong place, or present with the wrong details. Each of these is a variance, and each needs its own kind of follow-up.
Variances are not the same as losses. Most turn out to be record-keeping gaps: a move nobody entered, a loan nobody logged. The point of tracking variances is to sort the real losses from the paperwork errors, and then to fix whatever caused them.
Types of audit variance
| Variance | What the count shows | Typical cause | Usual resolution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing | In the register, not found | Unrecorded disposal, loan, theft, item in an area not counted | Search and investigate; if confirmed lost, write off with approval |
| Unexpected (found) | Found, not in the register | Purchase that skipped registration, donation, tag never linked | Confirm ownership, then register and tag |
| Wrong location | Found, but not where recorded | Move not entered, hot-desking, shared equipment | Update the location; ask why moves are not being recorded |
| Wrong condition | Found, but damaged or unusable while recorded as in use | Damage not reported, status not updated | Update status, raise a repair, or start disposal |
| Wrong custodian | Found, but held by someone else | Informal hand-over, leaver not processed | Update the custodian; record a check-out if it is a loan |
A missing item is the source of ghost assets. An unexpected item is an unregistered asset. The last three are attribute variances: the asset is there, but its record is wrong.
Variance rate: a worked example
The simplest measure is the variance rate: the share of expected assets that had any kind of variance. It is worth tracking each type separately too, because a high location variance points to a different problem from a high missing rate.
Report variances by count and by value. Twelve missing mouse mats and twelve missing laptops are very different findings, Finance will want the net book value of anything heading for a write-off.
How to resolve variances
- Recount the area if the variance rate is unusually high; a missed shelf looks like a dozen missing assets.
- Check the history of each missing item: check-outs, repair work orders, transfers and its last recorded move.
- Ask the custodian and people who work in the area.
- Correct attribute variances straight away: location, custodian and condition.
- Register genuine unexpected items once you have confirmed they belong to you and not to a contractor or tenant.
- Escalate the rest. Items still not found after a search go for an approved write-off, with the reason recorded.
- Look for patterns. If wrong-location variances cluster on one floor, the move process there needs fixing.
Common mistakes
- Treating every missing item as lost. Investigate first, or you will write off items that turn up next month.
- Netting gains against losses. Six unexpected items do not cancel out six missing ones.
- Ignoring attribute variances. A register with right items and wrong locations still fails the next audit.
- No baseline. Without a variance rate from the last audit, you cannot tell whether things are improving.
Spreadsheet vs software
In a spreadsheet, variances come from comparing two lists with a lookup, then adding a status column by hand. Wrong-condition and wrong-custodian variances are usually lost, because a tick on a list cannot capture them. Software records them at the moment of the scan and keeps each resolution with the asset's history. To estimate how long a count and its follow-up will take for your register, try the audit time calculator.
Variances in Asetavo
In an Asetavo stock-take (Growth plan and above), each room shows expected, found, misplaced and unknown as you scan. After you submit and reconcile, you work through the variances on the phone or the web and mark each one Found it, Still searching or Write off. Moves, condition and custodian changes made during follow-up are recorded in the asset's history, and the stock-take variance report exports to Excel or CSV. See stock-takes on mobile.
