Are You Ready for RIM? 5 Key Questions OEMs Should Ask

The value of a Retail Inventory Management (RIM) program is no longer up for debate. OEMs know that improving visibility into dealer and end customer demand, optimizing dealer stocking decisions, and strengthening channel collaboration are essential for improving parts revenue and delivering better service outcomes. 

But the reality is, not every OEM is ready to launch a RIM program. And that's okay, as long as you're asking the right questions to prepare. 

Whether you're planning your first RIM initiative or modernizing an existing approach, success starts with alignment across people, processes, and platforms. 

In this blog, we’ll explore five key questions to help you assess whether your organization is ready to launch or evolve a successful RIM program. 

RIM Readiness Isn’t Just Technical. It's Strategic. 

A modern RIM program does more than automate dealer replenishment. It connects your network, surfaces real demand signals, and turns inventory into a competitive advantage. To unlock that value, your organization needs to be ready to lead the change, not just implement it. 

Here are some of the key questions to ask: 

1. Is your organization aligned on the "why"?

Implementing a RIM program should be seen as a strategic shift, not just another system implementation. Teams across supply chain, service, sales, and IT need to understand how it drives higher parts revenue, reduces friction, and improves dealer relationships. If stakeholders still view it as a purely operational initiative, it may be time to reframe the conversation around business outcomes. 

Also important is a clear-eyed view of current dealer inventory behavior. Are stocking decisions based on data, past experience, or gut feel? How much variation exists across your network? Do dealers trust your systems, and how much business is leaking to third-party parts providers? These insights can help you build a stronger internal case for change and lay the groundwork for a strategy that reflects dealer realities. 

2. Do you have clear stocking policies and program rules?

In many OEM networks, dealer stocking decisions are still driven by spreadsheets, instinct, or legacy defaults in a dealer's DMS. While that may work on a local level, it makes it difficult to ensure consistency, optimize performance, or build trust across the network. 

Before you implement a RIM program, it’s important to define the rules of the game. What logic should guide replenishment? What metrics define success? How will exceptions be handled, and by whom? 

If your stocking policies are informal, vary by region, or haven’t been communicated clearly to dealers, adoption will be difficult to drive and even harder to scale. A clear, standardized foundation gives your dealers confidence in the system, and your internal teams a shared playbook to execute against.  

3. Are your systems and data ready to support a RIM program?

Great intentions can be derailed by poor data. RIM programs depend on high-quality inputs: clean master data, accurate end customer demand, and reliable visibility into dealer inventory levels. They also require stable, secure connections between your systems and a wide range of dealer environments. 

Beyond the ability to connect, you’ll need robust error handling, validation checks, and real-time alerts to manage the complexity of pulling data from multiple dealer systems. If your infrastructure isn’t equipped to handle those demands, it’s worth identifying and addressing gaps early before they impact adoption or performance.  

4. Do you have a plan for dealer onboarding and support?

Even the best RIM solution won't deliver results without dealer buy-in. That means equipping your field teams to build trust, answer questions, and show how the program benefits individual roles within the dealership. 

For example, parts managers benefit from automated replenishment that reduces stockouts and overages, improves fill rates, and minimizes costly emergency orders. Service managers gain consistent access to more parts on shelf, enabling faster turnaround times, increased service bay utilization, and higher customer satisfaction. That all adds up to reduced working capital, improved inventory turns, and lower freight costs, making the parts business more efficient and profitable for both dealers and OEMs. 

5. Do you have the right partner in place?

RIM programs can’t be run on plug-and-play solutions. Implementing a RIM program is a transformation effort that spans people, processes, and platforms. And that means choosing a partner with more than just software. 

You need someone who brings proven RIM experience, understands the realities of global dealer networks, and can offer ongoing support for adoption, performance monitoring, and program optimization. 

Look for a partner who can accelerate your timeline, reduce internal burden, and help you focus on what matters most: driving results across your network. 

Laying the Groundwork for Growth 

These aren’t easy questions, but they’re essential for any OEM serious about strengthening dealer relationships and driving aftermarket growth. The more honestly and clearly you can answer them, the better positioned you’ll be to launch a program that works. 

For a deeper dive into how modern RIM programs are transforming dealer performance and OEM profitability, read our latest white paper: The OEM Playbook for Dealer Loyalty and Parts Growth.