Director of sourcing vs planning manager

The differences between directors of sourcing and planning managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a director of sourcing, becoming a planning manager takes usually requires 8-10 years. Additionally, a director of sourcing has an average salary of $140,924, which is higher than the $98,486 average annual salary of a planning manager.

The top three skills for a director of sourcing include supply chain, strategic sourcing and continuous improvement. The most important skills for a planning manager are project management, customer service, and strong analytical.

Director of sourcing vs planning manager overview

	Director Of Sourcing	Planning Manager
Yearly salary	$140,924	$98,486
Hourly rate	$67.75	$47.35
Growth rate	-6%	10%
Number of jobs	14,569	137,190
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age	47	39
Years of experience	6	10

What does a director of sourcing do?

A director of sourcing is an executive professional who supervises a team of sourcing managers that manages the supply portfolio of a company to ensure spending transparency. This director is required to direct overseas factory meetings weekly to review product development and optimize the company's overall supply chain. The director must lead cross-functional process improvement teams to enhance performance and improve product quality. This director must also maintain excellent working relationships with vendors to ensure the success of their projects.

What does a planning manager do?

Planning managers perform various duties and responsibilities for an organization. These include planning and monitoring a project or department's budget, production schedule, and inventory, creating reports of new plans, programs, and regulations, and ensuring development proposals comply with requirements and regulations. Additionally, planning managers are expected to serve as an intermediary between developers, government entities, businesses, and communities. They also oversee site plans, rezoning, and special-use permits, set schedules for the project, and supervise other personnel such as developers and consultants.

Director of sourcing vs planning manager salary

Directors of sourcing and planning managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Director Of Sourcing	Planning Manager
Average salary	$140,924	$98,486
Salary range	Between $99,000 And $200,000	Between $71,000 And $135,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	New Jersey	California
Best paying company	NVIDIA	ZS
Best paying industry	Retail	Technology

Differences between director of sourcing and planning manager education

There are a few differences between a director of sourcing and a planning manager in terms of educational background:

	Director Of Sourcing	Planning Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	University of Georgia

Director of sourcing vs planning manager demographics

Here are the differences between directors of sourcing' and planning managers' demographics:

	Director Of Sourcing	Planning Manager
Average age	47	39
Gender ratio	Male, 73.7% Female, 26.3%	Male, 64.1% Female, 35.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.1% Asian, 7.4% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	11%	10%

Differences between director of sourcing and planning manager duties and responsibilities

Director of sourcing example responsibilities.

Attain ISO 9002 certification in a FDA supervise GMP facility.
Review RFI and RFP s and award business and contracts as well as managing reverse auctions.
Manage transportation logistics and schedule delivery pickup to ensure inventory levels of consumer goods are maintained and program initiatives fully support.
Establish QC manuals and audit process for 3rd party resident inspection team in Asia.
Mentore organization through FDA and TUV audits, product recalls, and complaint investigations CAPA.
Lead national RFP responses from major global organizations, which result in new national account customers.

Planning manager example responsibilities.

Lead a team that contribute to Mexico achieving the #1 market position through the implementation of CPFR and sales support.
Manage commodities teams in support of program execution.
Lead initial rollout of JDA / manugistics concepts and forecasting operations.
Manage and analyze monthly OTB opportunities base on receipt projections using JDA.
Used people skills managing upward to build corporate consensus on ISO processes and controls.
Develop an ABC class system, which lead to a $1,000,000 inventory reduction.

Director of sourcing vs planning manager skills

Common director of sourcing skills

Supply Chain, 14%
Strategic Sourcing, 8%
Continuous Improvement, 6%
Project Management, 5%
Process Improvement, 5%
Logistics, 4%

Common planning manager skills

Project Management, 11%
Customer Service, 8%
Strong Analytical, 7%
KPIs, 7%
Demand Planning, 7%
Capacity Planning, 4%

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Director Of Sourcing
Director Of Sourcing vs Planning Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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