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The differences between supply chain planners 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 supply chain planner and a purchasing assistant. Additionally, a supply chain planner has an average salary of $80,668, which is higher than the $38,331 average annual salary of a purchasing assistant.
The top three skills for a supply chain planner include supply chain, customer service and supply chain planning. The most important skills for a purchasing assistant are purchase orders, purchase requisitions, and customer service.
| Supply Chain Planner | Purchasing Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $80,668 | $38,331 |
| Hourly rate | $38.78 | $18.43 |
| Growth rate | 28% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 36,145 | 8,415 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 47 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
The job of supply chain planners, or logisticians, is to plan, develop, and schedule project management tools in support of an organization's operations. They are responsible for managing and monitoring inventories, forecasting production and sales levels, and tracking response time and delivery performance. Other duties include analyzing the levels of finished products, developing and monitoring production plans, and generating reports. Supply chain planners are also responsible for supervising other team members and ensuring that customer service best practices are followed.
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.
Supply chain planners and purchasing assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Supply Chain Planner | Purchasing Assistant | |
| Average salary | $80,668 | $38,331 |
| Salary range | Between $58,000 And $110,000 | Between $31,000 And $47,000 |
| Highest paying City | Richmond, CA | Baltimore, MD |
| Highest paying state | California | Maryland |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | University of California, Berkeley |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a supply chain planner and a purchasing assistant in terms of educational background:
| Supply Chain Planner | Purchasing Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between supply chain planners' and purchasing assistants' demographics:
| Supply Chain Planner | Purchasing Assistant | |
| Average age | 47 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 55.0% Female, 45.0% | Male, 22.8% Female, 77.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.8% Asian, 9.0% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | 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 | 10% | 7% |