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The differences between senior purchasing managers and supply chain directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a senior purchasing manager and a supply chain director. Additionally, a supply chain director has an average salary of $129,438, which is higher than the $109,837 average annual salary of a senior purchasing manager.
The top three skills for a senior purchasing manager include supply chain, purchase orders and logistics. The most important skills for a supply chain director are supply chain, logistics, and chain operations.
| Senior Purchasing Manager | Supply Chain Director | |
| Yearly salary | $109,837 | $129,438 |
| Hourly rate | $52.81 | $62.23 |
| Growth rate | -6% | - |
| Number of jobs | 19,183 | 37,396 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A senior purchasing manager is responsible for spearheading and overseeing the efforts in purchasing supplies for a company. They are in charge of managing purchasing teams, gathering purchase requests, identifying the company's needs, and setting goals in adherence to the budget. They must also liaise with vendors and suppliers, negotiate contracts, and build positive relationships with them. Furthermore, as a senior manager, it is essential to lead and encourage teams to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
A supply chain director is primarily in charge of the overall supply chain operations in a company. Their responsibilities revolve around devising strategies to improve processes, creating business plans and sales forecasts, delegating tasks, coordinating and selecting suppliers and vendors, creating new supply chain policies when necessary, and spearheading the inventory and delivery processes. There are also instances when a supply chain director must report to higher-ranking officials, produce progress reports, and craft presentations. Furthermore, as a director, it is essential to lead the workforce while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Senior purchasing managers and supply chain directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Purchasing Manager | Supply Chain Director | |
| Average salary | $109,837 | $129,438 |
| Salary range | Between $79,000 And $152,000 | Between $90,000 And $185,000 |
| Highest paying City | Oakland, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Tonix Pharmaceuticals | Chewy |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Hospitality |
There are a few differences between a senior purchasing manager and a supply chain director in terms of educational background:
| Senior Purchasing Manager | Supply Chain Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between senior purchasing managers' and supply chain directors' demographics:
| Senior Purchasing Manager | Supply Chain Director | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 68.0% Female, 32.0% | Male, 83.1% Female, 16.9% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 12.1% Asian, 7.4% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 7.4% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 8.8% White, 65.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |