How to hire a supply manager

How to hire a supply manager, step by step

Here's a step-by-step supply manager hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a supply manager job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new supply manager
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a supply manager do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the supply manager you need to hire. Certain supply manager roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A supply manager's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, supply managers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   The following list breaks down different types of supply managers and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Supply Manager	Description	Hourly rate
   Supply Manager		$32-65
   Director, Procurement	The responsibilities of a procurement director revolve around ensuring the efficient and smooth flow of supplies within the company, developing procurement strategies for optimal services and operations, assessing risks, and overseeing the implementation of new policies and regulations in the company. It is essential to coordinate with analysts to identify areas with potential opportunities or those needing improvements... Show more	$47-95
   Contracts Director	A contract director is primarily in charge of developing and negotiating contracts with clients and partners, ensuring adherence to the company's policies and regulations. Their responsibilities typically revolve around performing extensive research and analysis to foresee potential advantages and disadvantages, coordinating with analysts and other experts, monitoring the progress of operations to ensure contract compliance of both parties, and overseeing the development of proposals within the organization... Show more	$22-55

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Supply Chain
   • Patients
   • Supplier Performance
   • Supplier Relationships
   • Cost Savings
   • Chain Management
   • Purchase Orders
   • Logistical Support
   • Cost Reduction
   • Strategic Sourcing
   • Sigma
   • Inventory Control
   • Process Improvement
   • Inventory Management

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage global supply partners for PCB assembly from product introduction through mass production.
   • Manage supplier relationship, conduct quarterly supplier reviews to ensure suppliers are meeting predetermine KPI's.
   • Lead, organize and complete all assignment and/or replication of OEM software contracts for Lucent/AVAYA spin-off.
   • Manage supplier MRP by identifying and tracking critical component changes, board spins, and lead-time analysis.
   • Develop detail CapEx requirements, secure CapEx funding, and manage the supply and qualification of production equipment.
   • Manage hedging of key commodities to reduce volatility in their prices and generate cost savings for manufacturing centers

   More supply manager duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your supply manager job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A supply manager salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, supply managers' average salary in south carolina is 30% less than in new york.
   • Seniority. Entry-level supply managers earn 50% less than senior-level supply managers.
   • Certifications. A supply manager with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a supply manager's salary.

   Average supply manager salary

   $96,971yearly

   $46.62 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level supply manager salary

   $68,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average supply manager salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$123,841	$60
   2	New York	$118,519	$57
   3	Michigan	$113,999	$55
   4	Arizona	$112,623	$54
   5	Indiana	$109,983	$53
   6	District of Columbia	$107,555	$52
   7	New Jersey	$107,535	$52
   8	Massachusetts	$106,675	$51
   9	Rhode Island	$100,777	$48
   10	North Carolina	$99,536	$48
   11	Delaware	$97,725	$47
   12	Ohio	$97,295	$47
   13	Texas	$96,517	$46
   14	Louisiana	$94,620	$45
   15	Georgia	$94,012	$45
   16	Illinois	$93,944	$45
   17	Minnesota	$93,717	$45
   18	Virginia	$93,096	$45
   19	Colorado	$92,251	$44
   20	Maryland	$92,047	$44

   Average supply manager salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	PVH	$138,252	$66.47	2
   2	Apple	$132,189	$63.55	14
   3	Palo Alto Networks	$130,055	$62.53	2
   4	Mars	$128,889	$61.97	4
   5	Arrow Electronics	$122,028	$58.67	55
   6	Accenture	$120,976	$58.16	1,032
   7	Meta	$119,075	$57.25	96
   8	Mirabito	$116,306	$55.92
   9	Novartis	$114,436	$55.02
   10	Applied Materials	$112,540	$54.11	10
   11	Eaton	$112,368	$54.02	11
   12	Colgate-Palmolive	$111,498	$53.60	8
   13	SoCalGas	$110,804	$53.27
   14	International Flavors & Fragrances	$110,736	$53.24	2
   15	DISYS	$110,666	$53.20
   16	Occidental Petroleum	$110,012	$52.89
   17	GEICO	$108,723	$52.27
   18	KONE	$108,534	$52.18
   19	Eastman	$108,019	$51.93	2
   20	Dunkin Brands	$106,836	$51.36

4. Writing a supply manager job description

   A supply manager job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a supply manager job description:

   Supply manager job description example

   ez Cater is the most trusted provider of corporate food solutions - a $300+ billion market in the US alone. ez Cater is purpose-built for business. ez Cater's corporate food platform and flexible, scalable food solutions allow organizations to centralize and track their food spend, and fulfill everything from daily employee meals to client meetings and company all-hands. ez Cater backs this up with business-grade, best-in-class, customer service and an unmatched nationwide footprint. We're backed by top investors including Insight, Iconiq, Lightspeed, GIC, SoftBank, and Quadrille, and had an up-round in December of 2021 when we were valued at $1.6 billion.
   
   We're looking for a scrappy, hands-on, curious, and innovative team leader to support taking our restaurant network to the next level of excellence. You'll support our team of Menu Optimization Specialists who consult and optimize our current network, as well as help us identify who, what, and where we are missing critical supply. In this role, you will work closely with our Sales, Onboarding, Menu, and Operations teams to ensure that our restaurant supply is tightly aligned with the needs of our customers. We're looking for a self-driven, innovative, creative, and collaborative individual with strong project management skills and a high capacity to influence their team and cross-functional partners to lead this team during our next stage of growth and beyond.
   
   What you'll do: Manage. You'll directly oversee a small team of optimization specialists who regularly consult with our restaurant partners to drive their menus to new heights of success. Specialize. You'll become an expert on our supply through all stages of the partner lifecycle - from onboarding, to modifications, to quality assurance. After that, you'll help us diagnose exactly what we're missing.Collaborate. You'll ensure that our Menu Support Team by ensuring that all of our menu creation and maintenance is infused with the success metrics that your team lives and breathes.Strategize. You'll build out plans for your team to ensure our optimization team's goals and KPIs are supporting our larger company vision. Experiment. You'll use both internal and external data sources to inform best menu practices for our 95k partners. Influence. You'll act as a strategic partner on cross-functional projects with our Demand Sales, Partner Operations, and Marketing teams to ensure we're driving restaurant success across multiple areas of the business Support. You and our team will provide multiple internal stakeholders and restaurant partners with timely and thoughtful menu insights and analyses Implement. You'll run pilots with our restaurant partners, define success metrics, create new internal processes, and work side-by-side with our Product, Sales, Operations, Support, and Engineering to build new tools and features.Engage. You'll identify our optimal restaurant supply to test our new initiatives and will sell the value proposition to them. Wear a ton of hats. You're equally comfortable in the weeds and at 10,000 feet. You have a “no task is too small” mentality.
   
   What you have: You're well-versed in Operations. You've ideally had at least 2-4 years of experience at a technology company solving complex customer or partner-facing problems. Whether it's Zendesk, Hubspot, monday.com, or our homegrown tools, you can pick it up fast and then teach others the ropes. You're a visionary leader. You have ideally 2-3 years people management experience, preferably including in a remote environment. You love the challenge of getting people excited about your next big idea. You're a born problem solver. Inventing new ways to approach problems excites you. “Get to the root cause” is a phrase you use often. You talk the talk and walk the walk. You'll roll up your sleeves with your team, engaging with our restaurant partners to advise them on how to optimize for success. You're a circus-level juggler. You're comfortable working simultaneously on multiple competing priorities and deliverables from both internal and external stakeholders. You're comfortable using data. You're great at pulling relevant insights from multiple complex data sets and are passionate about tracking everything that you do. You're a strong communicator. You have experience thoughtfully explaining unique concepts to diverse audiences and know how to keep everyone on the same page. Not to mention, you possess strong presentation skills both in person and virtually. You're incredibly curious. You're biased towards action. You love working as a “generalist” on complex problems. Bonus points if you've also: Worked in the restaurant industry or restaurant tech space.Had experience creating engaging + data-driven presentations and collateral.
   The national cash compensation range for this role is $80,000 - $118,000 annually*
   
   *Please note: Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors, including prior experience, expertise and region & may vary from the amount above. This range does not represent additional compensation benefits (such as equity, 401K or medical, dental or vision insurance).
   
   ez Cater does not sponsor applicants for work visas or legal permanent residence.
   
   What you'll get from us:
   You'll get a terrifically compelling opportunity, in an environment of radical transparency, open access to all the data, and collaborative colleagues at every level of our organization. You'll also get sane working hours and great flexibility around work/life balance.
   
   Have people in your life - of any age - who always, often, or sometimes need your help? We make room for that. Have a bad thing or a good thing happen to you? We make room for that, too.
   
   Oh, and you'll get all this: Market salary, stock options that you'll help make worth a lot, the usual holidays, all-you-can-eat vacation, 401K with ez Cater match, health/dental/FSA, long-term disability insurance, remote-hybrid work from our awesome Boston or Denver offices OR your home OR a mixture of both home and office (you choose!), a tremendous amount of responsibility and autonomy, wicked awesome co-workers, cupcakes (and many more goodies) when you're in one of our offices, and knowing that you helped get this rocket ship to the moon.
   
   ez Cater is an equal opportunity employer. We embrace humans of every background, appearance, race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, and disability status. At the same time, we do not employ jerks, even brilliant ones.
   
   For information on how ez Cater collects and uses job applicants' personal information, please visit our Job Applicant Privacy Policy.
   
   #LI-Remote
   #BI-Remote

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find supply managers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any supply managers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level supply managers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your supply manager job on Zippia to find and recruit supply manager candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with supply manager candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new supply manager

   Once you've decided on a perfect supply manager candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new supply manager. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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