Purchasing manager to resource manager
A purchasing manager already meets 62% of what the resource manager role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
43.5/ 100
1 How much of what a resource manager is expected to do is already part of a purchasing manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the resource manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A resource manager role treats 18 of its required skills as things a purchasing manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- analyse logistic changes
- analyse supply chain strategies
- analyse supply chain trends
- assess supplier risks
- corporate social responsibility
- estimate costs of required supplies
What stands in the way is 7 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 22 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A resource manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a purchasing manager background worth leading with.
- already held calculate purchasing levels of raw materials information skills
- already held estimate costs of required supplies information skills
- already held analyse logistic changes information skills
- already held supply chain principles business, administration and law
- already held supplier management business, administration and law
- already held manage inventory management skills
All 22 carried skills, including the 18 the resource manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 21 missing skills fall into 4 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn analyse business plans required
- still to learn assess financial viability required
- still to learn perform resource planning required
- optional, not held accurately estimate work hours optional
- optional, not held advise on risk management optional
- optional, not held apply for government funding optional
- optional, not held estimate duration of work optional
- optional, not held estimate profitability optional
- still to learn project management required
- still to learn business strategy concepts required
- optional, not held conflict management optional
- optional, not held financial forecasting optional
- optional, not held human resource management optional
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
- still to learn forecast workload required
- still to learn perform project management required
- optional, not held programme work according to incoming orders optional
- optional, not held control financial resources optional
- optional, not held manage human resources optional
- optional, not held manage sub-contract labour optional
- optional, not held ensure cross-department cooperation optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a resource manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 project management study this
- 02 analyse business plans practise this
- 03 assess financial viability practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 22 skills that carry over
- already held analyse logistic changes skill
- already held analyse supply chain strategies skill
- already held analyse supply chain trends skill
- already held assess supplier risks skill
- already held corporate social responsibility knowledge
- already held estimate costs of required supplies skill
- already held follow company standards skill
- already held identify suppliers skill
- already held liaise with managers skill
- already held maintain relationship with customers skill
- already held maintain relationship with suppliers skill
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held manage inventory skill
- already held order supplies skill
- already held strive for company growth skill
- already held supplier management knowledge
- already held supply chain management knowledge
- already held supply chain principles knowledge
- already held calculate purchasing levels of raw materials skill
- already held ensure equipment availability skill
- already held manage supplies skill
- already held risk management knowledge
14 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held programme work according to incoming orders optional
- optional, not held accurately estimate work hours optional
- optional, not held advise on risk management optional
- optional, not held apply for government funding optional
- optional, not held conflict management optional
- optional, not held control financial resources optional
- optional, not held ensure cross-department cooperation optional
- optional, not held estimate duration of work optional
- optional, not held estimate profitability optional
- optional, not held financial forecasting optional
- optional, not held human resource management optional
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
- optional, not held manage human resources optional
- optional, not held manage sub-contract labour optional
31 held skills the resource manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role advise on sustainable management policies skill
- not needed by the target role analyse consumer buying trends skill
- not needed by the target role assess procurement needs skill
- not needed by the target role attend trade fairs skill
- not needed by the target role carry out statistical forecasts skill
- not needed by the target role category specific expertise knowledge
- not needed by the target role coordinate purchasing activities skill
- not needed by the target role implement procurement of innovation skill
- not needed by the target role implement sustainable procurement skill
- not needed by the target role international business knowledge
- not needed by the target role issue sales invoices skill
- not needed by the target role maintain contract administration skill
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role manage procurement planning skill
- not needed by the target role manage rented goods returns skill
- not needed by the target role manage staff skill
- not needed by the target role market pricing knowledge
- not needed by the target role monitor stock level skill
- not needed by the target role negotiate buying conditions skill
- not needed by the target role negotiate sales contracts skill
- not needed by the target role perform procurement market analysis skill
- not needed by the target role pricing strategies knowledge
- not needed by the target role procurement legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role procurement lifecycle knowledge
- not needed by the target role quality standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role recruit employees skill
- not needed by the target role study sales levels of products skill
- not needed by the target role sustainable manufacturing knowledge
- not needed by the target role track price trends skill
- not needed by the target role train employees skill
- not needed by the target role use e-procurement skill
6 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn project management required
- still to learn business strategy concepts required
- optional, not held conflict management optional
- optional, not held financial forecasting optional
- optional, not held human resource management optional
- optional, not held labour legislation optional
Other moves recorded from purchasing manager
- forecast manager 66% covered · moderate
- supply chain manager 53% covered · substantial
- procurement category specialist 50% covered · moderate
- purchaser 48% covered · substantial
- ICT vendor relationship manager 46% covered · substantial
- ICT buyer 42% covered · substantial
- purchase planner 38% covered · substantial
- procurement support officer 32% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a purchasing manager become a resource manager?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A purchasing manager already covers 62% of what a resource manager is expected to do: 22 skills carry over, 18 of which the resource manager role treats as required.
What skills does a purchasing manager need to become a resource manager?
7 required skills are missing, plus 14 optional ones. They fall into 4 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is project management.
How hard is the move from purchasing manager to resource manager?
Its learning distance is 43.5 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.