Acquisitions manager vs purchasing manager

The differences between acquisitions managers and purchasing managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an acquisitions manager and a purchasing manager. Additionally, a purchasing manager has an average salary of $98,118, which is higher than the $97,768 average annual salary of an acquisitions manager.

The top three skills for an acquisitions manager include due diligence, project management and digital marketing. The most important skills for a purchasing manager are supply chain, strategic sourcing, and project management.

Acquisitions manager vs purchasing manager overview

	Acquisitions Manager	Purchasing Manager
Yearly salary	$97,768	$98,118
Hourly rate	$47.00	$47.17
Growth rate	3%	-6%
Number of jobs	9,054	30,430
Job satisfaction	5	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Average age	48	47
Years of experience	6	6

What does an acquisitions manager do?

Acquisition managers supervise a company's purchasing ventures. They are responsible for discovering and analyzing possible purchase deals, arranging the purchase terms and contracts, implementing and completing the purchase. They work in multiple industries, generally labor 40 or more hours a week in an office domain, and may need to travel occasionally. Employers look for candidates with strong leadership, negotiation, analytical, finance, and computer skills. Preferred individuals are those who have undergone project management and has training in areas such as mergers and acquisition, consulting, and corporate development.

What does a purchasing manager do?

A purchasing manager is responsible for organizing and managing products to order or sell. Purchasing managers review product specifications, negotiate pricing details with the vendors, evaluate and choose the best suppliers, and assist purchasing agents. Purchase managers are also responsible for resolving order processing issues and analyzing current market trends to determine which products to purchase. A purchasing manager must have excellent decision-making and strategical skills to examine effects, inspect defective items, and create an in-depth analysis of customers' needs to improve their performance and sales.

Acquisitions manager vs purchasing manager salary

Acquisitions managers and purchasing managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Acquisitions Manager	Purchasing Manager
Average salary	$97,768	$98,118
Salary range	Between $65,000 And $145,000	Between $70,000 And $136,000
Highest paying City	Hartford, CT	Richmond, CA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	Maine
Best paying company	McKinsey & Company Inc	McKinsey & Company Inc
Best paying industry	Professional	Technology

Differences between acquisitions manager and purchasing manager education

There are a few differences between an acquisitions manager and a purchasing manager in terms of educational background:

	Acquisitions Manager	Purchasing Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 66%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Southern California	Stanford University

Acquisitions manager vs purchasing manager demographics

Here are the differences between acquisitions managers' and purchasing managers' demographics:

	Acquisitions Manager	Purchasing Manager
Average age	48	47
Gender ratio	Male, 64.6% Female, 35.4%	Male, 67.0% Female, 33.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 5.4% White, 64.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 7.5% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	12%	11%

Differences between acquisitions manager and purchasing manager duties and responsibilities

Acquisitions manager example responsibilities.

Manage and coordinate creation of all HOA documents and set-up.
Lead media strategy to acquire Facebook data and grow company's first social lead pool
Lead paid acquisition marketing efforts to achieve user volume, quality and ROI goals within budgets.
Manage segment's treasury function including equity forecasting and investment requests as well as lender relations in a difficult banking environment.
Compose RFP responses to new business inquiries.
Represent program to OSD staff, i.e.

Purchasing manager example responsibilities.

Manage payroll and accounts payable.
Lead major purchasing projects for automotive OEM vehicles.
Used RFI, RFP, RFQ techniques to identify, select, and engage with suppliers to ensure competitive market advantage.
Establish an integrate MRO supply program which eliminate specific company manage buying, inventory control and warehousing functions.
Manage all procurement activities to support manufacturing operations including raw materials, tooling, components and MRO services.
Manage several indirect sourcing RFP projects including categories for translation services, payroll services, capital equipment and engineering services.

Acquisitions manager vs purchasing manager skills

Common acquisitions manager skills

Due Diligence, 9%
Project Management, 7%
Digital Marketing, 7%
PowerPoint, 4%
Mergers, 4%
Excellent Interpersonal, 4%

Common purchasing manager skills

Supply Chain, 15%
Strategic Sourcing, 7%
Project Management, 5%
Supplier Performance, 5%
Continuous Improvement, 4%
Purchase Orders, 4%

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Acquisitions Manager
Acquisitions Manager vs Purchasing Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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