How To Become A Manager Of Purchasing & Materials: What It Is and Career Path

What is a manager of purchasing & materials and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Priya Nagaraj

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a manager of purchasing & materials. For example, did you know that they make an average of $54.7 an hour? That's $113,769 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -6% and produce -29,500 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a manager of purchasing & materials?

Priya Nagaraj

Professor of Economics and Global Business, Website

Students should be able to analyze and interpret data. For instance, demand forecasting and predictive analytics are a large part of this industry today. As the number of regulations across nations increases, it is important to have at least some knowledge of foreign regulations. Cross-cultural knowledge and experience are always a plus in this area for prospective employees. People skills are also important along with knowledge of additional languages.

ScoreManager Of Purchasing & MaterialsUS Average

Salary

8.0

Avg. Salary $113,769

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.1

Growth rate -6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.30%

Asian 7.41%

Black or African American 9.01%

Hispanic or Latino 12.20%

Unknown 3.82%

White 67.27%

Gender

female 25.28%

male 74.72%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

8.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.7

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.4

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a manager of purchasing & materials

Explore manager of purchasing & materials education requirements

Most common manager of purchasing & materials degrees

Bachelor's

61.9 %

Associate

18.5 %

Master's

11.7 %

Start to develop specific manager of purchasing & materials skills

Skills	Percentages
Supplier Performance	17.45%
Purchase Orders	9.64%
Inventory Control	5.50%
Logistics	4.07%
R	3.85%

Complete relevant manager of purchasing & materials training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New managers of purchasing & materials learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a manager of purchasing & materials based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real manager of purchasing & materials resumes.

Research manager of purchasing & materials duties and responsibilities

Lead negotiations and awards of key procurement contracts and the development of supplier KPI's.
Manage these teams utilizing standard and process specific KPI metric goal setting, reporting and accountability.
Manage the purchase of raw materials, MRO supplies, chemicals and equipment from domestic and international suppliers.
Manage manufacturing documentation control, including BOM and assembly drawings.

Prepare your manager of purchasing & materials resume

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