Purchasing administrator vs administrator

The differences between purchasing administrators and administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a purchasing administrator, becoming an administrator takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, an administrator has an average salary of $72,882, which is higher than the $40,133 average annual salary of a purchasing administrator.

The top three skills for a purchasing administrator include purchase orders, invoice and data entry. The most important skills for an administrator are customer service, data entry, and troubleshoot.

Purchasing administrator vs administrator overview

	Purchasing Administrator	Administrator
Yearly salary	$40,133	$72,882
Hourly rate	$19.29	$35.04
Growth rate	-8%	5%
Number of jobs	63,681	67,553
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 56%
Average age	48	43
Years of experience	6	2

What does a purchasing administrator do?

A purchasing administrator is primarily in charge of overseeing a company's purchasing procedures. As a purchasing administrator, it is their duty to monitor the company's inventory of supplies, gather and analyze purchase requests, and process purchase orders, resolving issues should there be any. They must also negotiate with vendors and suppliers, building positive relationships with them. Furthermore, as a purchasing administrator, it is essential to maintain records of all transactions, producing progress reports regularly for a smooth and efficient workflow.

What does an administrator do?

Administrators are administrative professionals who oversee the whole office or department. They manage office activities and supervise administrative functions in the office. They work the office calendar and oversee the appointment-setting process. They coordinate office events and ensure that all preparations are made and that there are no conflicting schedules. They also maintain a database of external providers of various office needs. Administrators also oversee office supplies and prepare purchase requisitions. They also manage janitorial services and other functions that are related to the maintenance of the physical office space. Administrators ensure that all fixtures and equipment in the office are functioning well and have no problems.

Purchasing administrator vs administrator salary

Purchasing administrators and administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Purchasing Administrator	Administrator
Average salary	$40,133	$72,882
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $53,000	Between $46,000 And $113,000
Highest paying City	Sacramento, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Washington	Washington
Best paying company	Rivian	Apple
Best paying industry	Health Care	Manufacturing

Differences between purchasing administrator and administrator education

There are a few differences between a purchasing administrator and an administrator in terms of educational background:

	Purchasing Administrator	Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 56%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Purchasing administrator vs administrator demographics

Here are the differences between purchasing administrators' and administrators' demographics:

	Purchasing Administrator	Administrator
Average age	48	43
Gender ratio	Male, 24.0% Female, 76.0%	Male, 36.0% Female, 64.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 7.8% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 8.8% White, 64.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	7%	9%

Differences between purchasing administrator and administrator duties and responsibilities

Purchasing administrator example responsibilities.

Manage the RFP preparation and analysis, cost negotiations, and vendor performance management.
Manage logistics and materials receive for appropriate quantities, timeliness and accuracy to complete project project.
Resolve RMA s on all engineering material.
Schedule product delivery against customer needs and MRP.
Administer the ISO 9001 and vendor performance evaluation process.
Maintain and update supplier master information in the ERP system.

Administrator example responsibilities.

Develop a Perl script to manage the LDAP schema.
Hire and manage all receptionists and assistant MCA's.
Used all tools of Java stack in supporting and managing it.
Manage and process product orders on windows base on-line computer network system.
Manage ADP time system for technicians and approve time-off requests, supporting management.
Manage professional staff of 9 (including 5 MDs) and support staff of 10

Purchasing administrator vs administrator skills

Common purchasing administrator skills

Purchase Orders, 33%
Invoice, 10%
Data Entry, 10%
ERP, 4%
Office Equipment, 2%
Credit Card, 2%

Common administrator skills

Customer Service, 18%
Data Entry, 7%
Troubleshoot, 6%
Payroll, 6%
Financial Reports, 4%
Oversight, 4%

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Purchasing Administrator
Purchasing Administrator vs Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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