What does a purchasing assistant do?
A purchasing assistant is responsible for obtaining raw materials and goods for a business or company. They primarily function to assist purchasing managers or supervisors by keeping records, maintaining inventory, reviewing purchase orders, and monitoring shipments and deliveries. Furthermore, a purchasing assistant may perform administrative support tasks ranging from arranging appointments and managing schedules, answering calls and inquiries, reaching out to vendors and suppliers, producing reports, and coordinating with various departments to ensure the smooth flow of products within the company.
Purchasing assistant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real purchasing assistant resumes:
- Manage RFP process and play a key role in minimizing the cost of printing.
- Schedule and manage new product trials, liaise with vendors, surgeons and specialty coordinators.
- Manage activities of purchasing, production planning and scheduling, inventory management, warehousing and logistics.
- Master point of service (POS) computer system for automate order taking.
- Input of purchase orders into ERP system, order acknowledgments, follow-up, and expedition of orders.
- Prepare purchase orders using MRP, inspect incoming shipments for quality, and attend press checks for production approval.
- Provide support to the senior buyer, assisting in the preparation of RFQ's, RFP's, and purchase orders.
- Utilize purchasing and order inventory system extensively, including formatting spreadsheets for transfer into ERP.
- Research MRP requirements, verify inventory accuracy and place purchase orders for special fabrication material.
- Train new employees on POS system.
- Start in warehouse, move to expediter.
- Prepare materials for shipment via LTL, parcel, and expedite carriers.
- Analyze bills of material (BOM) and drawings to understand purchase requirements.
- Create user profiles and security in mainframe applications for new employees, backup AS400 daily.
- Process requisitions and maintain inventory of materials and supplies to meet production demands in AS400.
Purchasing assistant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 30% of Purchasing Assistants are proficient in Purchase Orders, Purchase Requisitions, and Customer Service. They’re also known for soft skills such as Writing skills, Organizational skills, and Interpersonal skills.
We break down the percentage of Purchasing Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Purchase Orders, 30%
Create, organize, and implement new filing system to facilitate greater efficiency in maintenance/storage of open/closed purchase orders.
- Purchase Requisitions, 18%
Reported directly to Procurement Manager, ensured timely process of purchase requisitions from 12 different departments.
- Customer Service, 11%
Designed collective data and created forms which bridged and streamlined operations between purchasing, production and customer service with improved efficiency.
- Data Entry, 8%
Ordered parts and assumed daily purchasing functions including data entry and verifying purchase orders to original requisitions.
- Logistics, 3%
Track incoming International and domestic shipments into spread sheets and collaborates with third party logistics to provide visibility.
- POS, 2%
Maintained regular communication with HBO staff, and vendors on the status and completion of POs, identified and resolved discrepancies.
"purchase orders," "purchase requisitions," and "customer service" are among the most common skills that purchasing assistants use at work. You can find even more purchasing assistant responsibilities below, including:
Writing skills. The most essential soft skill for a purchasing assistant to carry out their responsibilities is writing skills. This skill is important for the role because "secretaries and administrative assistants write memos and emails when communicating with managers, employees, and customers." Additionally, a purchasing assistant resume shows how their duties depend on writing skills: "filled in writing purchase orders for rental equipment. "
Organizational skills. Another essential skill to perform purchasing assistant duties is organizational skills. Purchasing assistants responsibilities require that "secretaries and administrative assistants keep files, folders, and schedules in order so that an office runs efficiently." Purchasing assistants also use organizational skills in their role according to a real resume snippet: "background included customer service skills giving me added strength in understanding inter-department organizational layers. "
Interpersonal skills. purchasing assistants are also known for interpersonal skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to purchasing assistant responsibilities, because "secretaries and administrative assistants interact with clients, customers, or staff." A purchasing assistant resume example shows how interpersonal skills is used in the workplace: "participate in weekly meetings excellent interpersonal and customer service skills maintain bom updated. "
The three companies that hire the most purchasing assistants are:
- D.R. Horton23 purchasing assistants jobs
- ALDI USA21 purchasing assistants jobs
- Uline20 purchasing assistants jobs
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Compare different purchasing assistants
Purchasing assistant vs. Contract worker
A contract worker is an independent contractor who only works at companies for a limited amount of time, according to agreed-upon contract terms. When it comes to employment, a contract worker may find opportunities in different industries, depending upon their set of skills and abilities. Although the extent of their responsibilities depends on their company or industry of employment, it typically includes performing basic tasks, maintaining an active communication line with co-workers, and adhering to company policies and regulations.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a purchasing assistant are more likely to require skills like "purchase orders," "purchase requisitions," "customer service," and "data entry." On the other hand, a job as a contract worker requires skills like "financial statements," "sql," "assembly line," and "powerpoint." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
On average, contract workers reach similar levels of education than purchasing assistants. Contract workers are 4.2% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 1.1% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Purchasing assistant vs. Senior buyer
The job of senior buyers, or also known as purchasing agents, is to meet the material needs of an organization. They are responsible for finding suppliers, arranging the distribution to several retail outlets, and supervising other purchasing agents. They also look for new product streams and establish procurement strategies. Senior buyers typically begin their careers as assistant buyers or junior purchasing agents. Most employers usually prefer those with college degrees in marketing, business, and economics.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real purchasing assistant resumes. While purchasing assistant responsibilities can utilize skills like "purchase requisitions," "data entry," "place orders," and "payroll," senior buyers use skills like "supply chain," "supplier performance," "commodities," and "continuous improvement."
On average, senior buyers earn a higher salary than purchasing assistants. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, senior buyers earn the most pay in the hospitality industry with an average salary of $81,144. Whereas purchasing assistants have higher pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $41,542.In general, senior buyers achieve similar levels of education than purchasing assistants. They're 4.6% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 1.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Purchasing assistant vs. Landman
Landmen are referred to as the public-facing side of a gas, mineral, and oil exploration and production team. They are professionals who interact and negotiate directly with landowners for the acquisition of gas and oil drilling leases. Their duties include acquiring subsurface mineral rights from the landowners. They negotiate mineral rights, which include marketing and leasing right from the owner. The skills necessary for the job include management skills, leadership, communication skills, and attention to detail.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, purchasing assistants are more likely to have skills like "purchase orders," "purchase requisitions," "customer service," and "data entry." But a landman is more likely to have skills like "ownership reports," "title searches," "due diligence," and "right-of-way."
When it comes to education, landmen tend to earn similar degree levels compared to purchasing assistants. In fact, they're 1.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 8.2% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Purchasing assistant vs. Buyer
A buyer's duties include product sourcing and comparing resources for the best product range that would suit the specific needs of the business. Buyers must have excellent communication and negotiation skills to evaluate items that most likely benefit the customer and improve the sales of daily operations with cost-efficient products. They also conduct extensive research for market and price trends while considering the highest quality standards. Buyers should also possess strong analytical skills to create purchase orders and statistical analysis.
Types of purchasing assistant
Updated January 8, 2025
