How to hire an inventory manager

How to hire an inventory manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step inventory manager hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an inventory manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new inventory manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an inventory manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring an inventory manager, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   Hiring the perfect inventory manager also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   The following list breaks down different types of inventory managers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Inventory Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Inventory Manager		$20-43
   Distribution Supervisor	A distribution supervisor is in charge of overseeing all distribution processes in a warehouse or similar setting, ensuring accuracy and smooth workflow. Their responsibilities typically revolve around coordinating deliveries and shipment, managing schedules, delegating tasks, assessing the performance of the workforce, and maintaining records of all transactions... Show more	$19-46
   Supply Chain Management Internship	Supply chain management (SCM) interns are responsible for performing various tasks related to SCM. The typical duties they perform include conducting quality audits, assisting with developing process controls, creating training documents, and providing assistance in the development and implementation of a material requirement planning system... Show more	$13-23

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • PET
   • Direct Reports
   • Customer Service
   • Inventory Control
   • Logistics
   • Manage Inventory
   • Customer Orders
   • Purchase Orders
   • Highlighted
   • Management System
   • ERP
   • Inventory Procedures
   • Loss Prevention
   • WMS

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Accomplish and operate MRP and produce purchasing orders to optimize inventories of materials and supplies necessary to achieve production demands.
   • Manage a wide variety of customer service and administrative software such as TallyWizard and QuickBooks.
   • Manage control measures to ensure mistakes, inaccuracies and discrepancies are highlight, addressed and resolve.
   • Manage credit control, monthly reconciliations, management analysis and internal control.
   • Reduce new parts inventory and increase cash flow level each year with JIT deliveries.
   • Create and implement numerous processes, reports, and indicators for MRO inventory management.

   More inventory manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your inventory manager job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. An inventory manager can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, inventory managers' average salary in hawaii is 39% less than in washington.
   • Seniority. Entry-level inventory managers 53% less than senior-level inventory managers.
   • Certifications. An inventory manager with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in an inventory manager's salary.

   Average inventory manager salary

   $62,768yearly

   $30.18 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level inventory manager salary

   $43,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 9, 2026

   Average inventory manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$84,591	$41
   2	Washington	$79,094	$38
   3	New York	$76,724	$37
   4	South Dakota	$69,900	$34
   5	Minnesota	$69,637	$33
   6	Virginia	$68,530	$33
   7	North Carolina	$65,147	$31
   8	Indiana	$65,136	$31
   9	Oregon	$64,885	$31
   10	Kansas	$64,391	$31
   11	Massachusetts	$64,361	$31
   12	Louisiana	$63,542	$31
   13	District of Columbia	$63,240	$30
   14	New Jersey	$63,142	$30
   15	South Carolina	$61,819	$30
   16	Tennessee	$61,018	$29
   17	Arizona	$60,608	$29
   18	Illinois	$60,096	$29
   19	Missouri	$59,882	$29
   20	Kentucky	$58,187	$28

   Average inventory manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	NVIDIA	$119,744	$57.57
   2	Amazon	$108,811	$52.31	112
   3	Riverbed Holdings, Inc.	$108,078	$51.96
   4	Five Below	$106,769	$51.33	2
   5	Wabtec Corporation	$100,181	$48.16
   6	Rent the Runway	$98,267	$47.24	2
   7	Corning Incorporated	$97,959	$47.10	8
   8	DoorDash	$94,061	$45.22	6
   9	Gardner Denver	$93,060	$44.74
   10	Nike	$92,779	$44.61	2
   11	EmblemHealth	$91,451	$43.97
   12	Tractor Supply	$90,660	$43.59	4
   13	Thales	$88,769	$42.68	1
   14	Target	$85,834	$41.27	16
   15	Baker Hughes	$85,237	$40.98	1
   16	Dollar Tree	$84,972	$40.85	1
   17	CVS Health	$84,290	$40.52	35
   18	Ernst & Young	$83,389	$40.09
   19	Stanley Black & Decker	$82,726	$39.77	2
   20	CarMax	$82,717	$39.77	108

4. Writing an inventory manager job description

   A job description for an inventory manager role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's an inventory manager job description:

   Inventory manager job description example

   Inventory Manager
   
   $40K Plus to Start Plus Benefits Plus Great Opportunity For Advancement

   We are PAM Distributing a Tulsa Based Wholesale Security & Surveilloance Distributor celebrating our 40th year in business and are located near 61st and Garnett. We have an immediate opening for a mature dependable Inventory Manager. Individual should have minimum three years’ experience in similar work. a solid work history and references.

   Our Staff is comprised of the original founder and 7 other employees. We are also in the process of filling two new openings. The founder has 40+ years’ experience in the industry, the most senior staff member has 25 years with the company. As such, we enjoy a small business / family atmosphere.

   Requirements

   · Minimum high school graduate & preferably some college or other formal training.

   · Three years' hands on experience in Security, CCTV, Networking or closely Related Industry

   · A positive, friendly, outgoing personality with good people skills & ability to build relationships

   · Understandiing the art of sales and the concept of self improvement and motivation.

   · Neat professional appearance in a casual environment.

   · Knowledge of Microsoft Excel, Outlook, Word and other computer programs.

   · Must be organized, dependable, and good at multitasking along with the ability to prioritize projects.

   · A Team Player with pleasant personality, outgoing and works well with others.

   · Effective communication skills to be used with fellow staff members, customers and vendors.

   ·

   Duties

   · Maintaining relationships with existing customers and assisting with repeat sales.

   · Developing relationships with non active customers.

   · Contact prospects via cold call, email and in person.

   · Gaining a clear understanding of customers' businesses and requirements.

   · Listening to customer requirements and presenting appropriately to make a sale.

   · Communicate clearly to prospects what you and our company can do for them.

   · Responding to incoming email and phone enquiries.

   · Making accurate, rapid cost calculations and providing customers with quotations.

   · Communicate clearly with team mates, customers and vendors.

   · Representing the company at trade exhibitions, events and demonstrations

   · Generating invoices & sales orders es office, or entering finformation into a computer system

   · Liaising with suppliers to check the progress of existing orders

   · Reviewing your own sales performance, setting goals and aiming to meet or exceed targets

   · Sharing future buying trends back to fellow employers

   · Attending team meetings for training and sharing best practice with colleagues

   Our normal business hours are 8 AM to 5 PM Monday thru Friday therefore hours for this position wills revolve around those hours. We are not open weekends. The position will require interaction with team mates, customers and vendors. Our dress code is casual, the atmosphere is laid back and we offer Health Insurance, Vacation, 401K, Holidays and a few other benefits. If you have a pleasant personality, dependable, detail oriented and up for a challenge, this is a great opportunity for a long term position.

   Thanks for stopping by and we wish you and yours well

   Sorry but no walk in interviews.

   Thanks for your interest.

   Company DescriptionPAM Distributing is a small family-owned and oriented Wholesale Commercial Electronic Distributing Company established in 1982. We enjoy a casual and laid-back atmosphere, (most of the time) with our seven team Members ready to make the starting days as stress-free as possible. Team Members with as many as 25+ years of service speaks for itself. PAM Distributing is focused on the most high-tech security and surveillance products in the USA. Our product lines are of the finest quality and highest demand. Our current business model is producing all-time record sales. General Product Lines include, Electronic Security and Surveillance Systems, Network Hardware and infrastructure, Commercial Audio/Video, Access Control, and related tools, testers & other accessories. Due to our growth, we are also in the process of filling two more new positions.
   
   You are welcome to contact PAM Distributing with questions or for additional details.
   Are you ready to join a rapidly growing company?
   If so...read on:

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are a few common ways to find inventory managers for your business:

   • Promoting internally or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to meet candidates with the right educational background.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to recruit passive job-seekers.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your inventory manager job on Zippia to find and recruit inventory manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting inventory managers requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new inventory manager

   Once you've found the inventory manager candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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