Product planner vs production control planner

The differences between product planners and production control planners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a product planner and a production control planner. Additionally, a product planner has an average salary of $94,669, which is higher than the $68,783 average annual salary of a production control planner.

The top three skills for a product planner include product development, product planning and product line. The most important skills for a production control planner are MRP, production control, and on-time delivery.

Product planner vs production control planner overview

	Product Planner	Production Control Planner
Yearly salary	$94,669	$68,783
Hourly rate	$45.51	$33.07
Growth rate	-3%	-3%
Number of jobs	85,346	98,958
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	2	2

What does a product planner do?

Product planner positions require a battery of skills, including decisiveness, stress management, leadership, organization, communication, statistics, business operations, computer literacy, and problem-solving, to name a few. Those who choose this career will be required to involve internally-focused decisions, steps, and tasks necessary to develop a successful product.

What does a production control planner do?

Production control planners have the ability to work well with others, analytical thinking, verbal communication, persistence, determination, ambition, and, of course, business management skills. Those who choose this career path will plan production control activities in order to improve runtime while maintaining high quality, cost-effectiveness, and timely delivery. Also, they will work on material planning and analysis for the purposes of reducing the inventory level.

Product planner vs production control planner salary

Product planners and production control planners have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Product Planner	Production Control Planner
Average salary	$94,669	$68,783
Salary range	Between $71,000 And $124,000	Between $52,000 And $90,000
Highest paying City	Santa Rosa, CA	Fremont, CA
Highest paying state	California	Washington
Best paying company	Apple	NVIDIA
Best paying industry	Technology	Automotive

Differences between product planner and production control planner education

There are a few differences between a product planner and a production control planner in terms of educational background:

	Product Planner	Production Control Planner
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Western Carolina University

Product planner vs production control planner demographics

Here are the differences between product planners' and production control planners' demographics:

	Product Planner	Production Control Planner
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 57.2% Female, 42.8%	Male, 63.0% Female, 37.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 7.4% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 7.2% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	11%

Differences between product planner and production control planner duties and responsibilities

Product planner example responsibilities.

Manage company MRP purchases including contractor and consultant contract review.
Perform financial forecasting, leveraging MRP to plan performance of products and evaluate ROI of raw materials.
Task with supervising raw materials suppliers for computer test equipment construction using several ERP systems.
Support implementation of new ERP system (MFGPRO Eb2) relate to engineering procurement systems and processes.
Set up KANBAN to assure the steady flow of parts without stock outs as well as growing inventories.
Work collaboratively with purchasing, production, engineering, quality control, BOM analysts, buyers, and suppliers.

Production control planner example responsibilities.

Coordinate daily materials supply concerns and recommend continuous improvement in the logistics system to achieve optimum materials support to aircraft maintenance.
Plan inventory management techniques (KANBAN) to avoid any shortages and excesses.
Maintain MRP, establish production schedules and staffing base on material availability and analysis of capacity.
Issue KANBAN cards: for the reorder of materials.
Prepare work orders for production and follow work in progress (WIP) through to completion.
Train users on new ERP system, documenting new procedures for users as applicable to their jobs.

Product planner vs production control planner skills

Common product planner skills

Product Development, 9%
Product Planning, 7%
Product Line, 7%
Logistics, 5%
MRP, 4%
Product Management, 4%

Common production control planner skills

MRP, 10%
Production Control, 9%
On-Time Delivery, 5%
Logistics, 5%
Production Planning, 5%
ERP, 4%

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Product Planner vs Production Control Planner

Updated January 8, 2025

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