Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between strategic buyers and purchasing assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a strategic buyer and a purchasing assistant. Additionally, a strategic buyer has an average salary of $74,725, which is higher than the $38,331 average annual salary of a purchasing assistant.
The top three skills for a strategic buyer include supply chain, purchase orders and strategic sourcing. The most important skills for a purchasing assistant are purchase orders, purchase requisitions, and customer service.
| Strategic Buyer | Purchasing Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $74,725 | $38,331 |
| Hourly rate | $35.93 | $18.43 |
| Growth rate | - | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 23,156 | 8,415 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A strategic buyer defines detailed plans and objectives for each project as per the organization and business unit purchasing strategies. Besides undertaking benchmarking and updating activity and project progress, strategic buyers also control the supply chain actions and supply chain risks to keep the supply chain secure. Also, these professionals negotiate favorable, effective, and precise terms and conditions as per the rules. Moreover, strategic buyers control the projects' risks and create an effective action plan to achieve all project objectives.
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.
Strategic buyers and purchasing assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Strategic Buyer | Purchasing Assistant | |
| Average salary | $74,725 | $38,331 |
| Salary range | Between $51,000 And $109,000 | Between $31,000 And $47,000 |
| Highest paying City | Pleasanton, CA | Baltimore, MD |
| Highest paying state | California | Maryland |
| Best paying company | Entegris | University of California, Berkeley |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Technology |
There are a few differences between a strategic buyer and a purchasing assistant in terms of educational background:
| Strategic Buyer | Purchasing Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between strategic buyers' and purchasing assistants' demographics:
| Strategic Buyer | Purchasing Assistant | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 61.7% Female, 38.3% | Male, 22.8% Female, 77.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 7.7% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.4% Asian, 7.8% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 7% |