How To Become A Procurement Services Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a procurement services manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Daniel Kruger

Businesses and organizations need something, either goods or services, at different times. However, it is the procurement services manager's job to ensure that the business spends wisely without overspending or underspending. The manager is responsible for sourcing services and products for the component, and sometimes leads a team of other procurement specialists or agents.

Also referred to as the purchasing manager, the procurement manager typically reports to the chief financial officer or chief operations officer depending on the organizational structure. Nonetheless, the manager and their team must work closely with the legal, operations, and finance departments.

The manager must ensure a balance between the cost and quality of an organization's spending and review past purchases to ensure compliance. They also handle RFP management, ROI analysis, procurement optimization process, and contract negotiation. A minimum of six years of experience in strategic/tactical procurement and other qualifications as demanded by the employee earns the manager an average of $86,590 yearly.

What general advice would you give to a procurement services manager?

Daniel Kruger

Academic Affairs Manager, NASPO

The procurement profession, like many industries, has undergone a shift as a result of the pandemic. NASPO is seeing states adjusting to revised bidding processes that include more eProcurement systems, and work from home is also a significant change for many state employees. New graduates will need to navigate the hiring process and onboarding potentially without a physical office or in-person collaboration with coworkers, so they need to be comfortable with technology and even a bit more extroverted early on to make those connections. This will require strong communication and interpersonal skills. Data analytics and supply chain knowledge continue to be critical, as well.

ScoreProcurement Services ManagerUS Average

Salary

7.7

Avg. Salary $101,878

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 7.45%

Black or African American 9.08%

Hispanic or Latino 12.31%

Unknown 3.82%

White 67.04%

Gender

female 37.79%

male 62.21%

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 procurement services manager

Explore procurement services manager education requirements

Most common procurement services manager degrees

Bachelor's

62.4 %

Master's

17.0 %

Associate

14.2 %

Start to develop specific procurement services manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Strategic Sourcing	10.25%
Supplier Performance	9.40%
RFP	7.62%
Real Estate	6.37%
SOX	5.58%

Complete relevant procurement services manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New procurement services managers 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 procurement services manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real procurement services manager resumes.

Research procurement services manager duties and responsibilities

Lead several highly visible project which require project oversight, budget management and ongoing communication.
Create IFB / RFQ proposal documents.
Define RFQ and purchasing recommendations that support business goals, in concert with companyobjectives.
Identify and implement purchasing relate process improvements within ERP system.

Apply for procurement services manager jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a procurement services manager job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do procurement services managers rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

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2 stars

1 star

Procurement services manager reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Aug 2020

Pros

Have a direct impact of the company bottom targets.

A zippia user wrote a review on Oct 2019

Pros

Learning more on the job and gaining new skills and experience

Cons

Nothing at all