How to Inventory Prime Now

More and more often, I find myself using Amazon Prime Now for two hour food and restaurant deliveries. As a former supply officer in the Marines, I quickly learned the importance of receipting for materiel as soon as it's received, before signing off on the delivery.

Pre-inventory

Receipting for a Prime Now delivery should also be done as soon as it arrives. To avoid any confusion or mistakes I simply unload everything in one spot, typcially on my kitchen counter (see my pre-inventory photo). Be sure to thoroughly check for any small items, especially in the bags with the cold packs.

Post-inventory

You can print out your order if it's a big delivery, but that shouldn't be necessary. I simply open my Prime Now app on my phone and start at the top of the list. As I scroll down, through each item, I pick it up and move it from my pre-inventory location to another counter (see my post-inventory photo). I've seen people simply take a quick look in their delivery bags and then put everything away, causing problems later when they're unsure if they received an item they ordered. Also, be sure to double check the quantities. 

Once you've gone through the entire list, you'll know within a two minutes if everything was delivered. If something's missing, I'll go through all the bags to triple check before calling customer service. 

If you have extra items, simply keep them. I've contacted Amazon when I was delivered a few extra items I didn't order and their response was "I'm truly sorry that you have received an extra bag of goodies. You are welcome to keep, dispose of or donate the items in that extra bag." Their loss is your gain. Not a bad deal.

If you're missing anything – or, if you've received the wrong order – then contact Amazon. They will probably give you a refund and/or a credit and then, if time allows, send out the replacement items.

In my experience, all of the drivers for Prime Now have been Amazon Flex Drivers which is like Uber/Lyft, but instead of moving people, the driver is moving goods. However, the Flex Drivers do not pick and pack the items in the warehouse; that's done by well-trained Amazon employees and highly obedient robots.

To speed up my delivery, I will use the app or website to track the Flex Driver on the way to my place and meet them between my front door and the street. Your deliverer will appreciate that, especially if you live in a gated complex. 

Like Uber/Lyft, no money is exchanged on the spot. It's all done ahead of time, through the app; even the tip.

Yes, Amazon's taking over the planet (and beyond). It's the second most valuable company in the world, if my calculations correct:

High Tech Market Capitalization

• Apple:     $939B
• Amazon:    $872B
• Google:    $824B
• Microsoft: $801B
• Facebook:  $599B
• Netflix:   $180B

PS – No, you don't have to queue up your food to inventory it. I don't. I only did it for these photos.

Encouraging Aggressiveness

What happens when a Marine loses equipment in combat?

One of my jobs in the Marines was as a supply officer for an infantry battalion at Camp Pendleton, CA. The majority of our warehouse was stocked with "782 gear" (/seven-eighty-two/) which is individual combat equipment and field gear such as helmets, canteens, ammo pouches, flak jackets, etc. A Marine would check into our battalion and he'd receive his standard issue of gear.

In the mid-1990s a standard issue was worth about $1,800. If any equipment became damaged or unserviceable due to routine use then it could be surveyed (one for one exchange) for a new piece of gear.

The odd part was if a Marine lost a piece of GI gear he didn't have to pay for it, even during peacetime. It may seem strange that someone entrusted with tax payer equipment didn't need to pay for losing it but it makes sense. The idea is to promote aggressiveness. Or, more specifically, to not encourage passivity in combat. We don't want Marines to find themselves discouraged from attacking an objective if they get a bill for equipment lost in the attack. After all, we're talking about combat. And we fight like we train so the same rules, along with a high degree of safety, should be applied in peacetime.

The formal process of filing a missing gear statement included having the Marine counseled by an officer outside his chain of command. During a counseling session the Marine would be encouraged to reimburse the government for the lost gear, but he was specifically told that he had no obligation. The Marine would make a written statement and the officer would certify his counseling session. During an audit, I'd have to produce this paperwork to certify the adjustment to our inventory records. There's a fair amount of paperwork involved in maintaining a chain of custody for government equipment.

My Experience  

When I was a second lieutenant at Quantico (TBS) I lost an expensive pair of Gore-Tex gloves during a night attack. Out of a sense of duty I moseyed over to the supply section and wrote a $120 check made payable to the U.S. Treasury. The sad part is the Marine Corps doesn't recover any of these funds – my money went directly to Uncle Sam and, in return, I was told it came with the uniform. Semper Fi.