Transfer errors show up as mystery shortages at the receiving branch and phantom surplus at the sending warehouse. Most of the time the pallet left correctly—the paper did not.
Print or write the transfer ticket before the first carton is staged. Listing after loading invites omissions: a last-minute SKU added to fill space never makes the sheet, yet it leaves the dock.
Require a second set of eyes on mixed pallets. One picker builds; one checker confirms SKU, pack size, and carton count against the ticket. For single-SKU pallets the check can be lighter, but mixed pallets deserve the second pass.
At the destination, receive against the ticket within the same shift when possible. Overnight parking of unopened transfers invites informal “borrowing” for walk-in sales, which then never appear as official transfers.
Keep a short exception log: damaged cartons, short counts, and substitutions. Review that log weekly with both warehouse and branch leads. Patterns in exceptions often point to packing habits or labeling gaps rather than theft.