Resource manager to purchasing manager
A resource manager already meets 56% of what the purchasing manager role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
52.8/ 100
1 How much of what a purchasing manager is expected to do is already part of a resource 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 purchasing manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A purchasing manager role treats 18 of its required skills as things a resource 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 purchasing manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a resource 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 purchasing manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 31 missing skills fall into 6 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 coordinate purchasing activities required
- still to learn negotiate sales contracts required
- still to learn manage contracts required
- still to learn negotiate buying conditions required
- optional, not held assess procurement needs optional
- optional, not held implement procurement of innovation optional
- optional, not held implement sustainable procurement optional
- optional, not held advise on sustainable management policies optional
- optional, not held attend trade fairs optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
- still to learn quality standards required
- optional, not held category specific expertise optional
- optional, not held market pricing optional
- optional, not held procurement lifecycle optional
- optional, not held international business optional
- optional, not held pricing strategies optional
- optional, not held procurement legislation optional
- still to learn study sales levels of products required
- optional, not held monitor stock level optional
- optional, not held perform procurement market analysis optional
- optional, not held track price trends optional
- optional, not held analyse consumer buying trends optional
- optional, not held carry out statistical forecasts optional
- optional, not held maintain contract administration optional
- still to learn issue sales invoices required
- optional, not held manage procurement planning optional
- optional, not held manage rented goods returns optional
- optional, not held manage staff optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- optional, not held sustainable manufacturing optional
- optional, not held use e-procurement optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a purchasing manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 coordinate purchasing activities practise this
- 02 issue sales invoices practise this
- 03 negotiate sales contracts 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
24 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held assess procurement needs optional
- optional, not held category specific expertise optional
- optional, not held implement procurement of innovation optional
- optional, not held implement sustainable procurement optional
- optional, not held manage procurement planning optional
- optional, not held market pricing optional
- optional, not held monitor stock level optional
- optional, not held perform procurement market analysis optional
- optional, not held procurement lifecycle optional
- optional, not held track price trends optional
- optional, not held use e-procurement optional
- optional, not held advise on sustainable management policies optional
- optional, not held analyse consumer buying trends optional
- optional, not held attend trade fairs optional
- optional, not held carry out statistical forecasts optional
- optional, not held international business optional
- optional, not held maintain contract administration optional
- optional, not held manage rented goods returns optional
- optional, not held manage staff optional
- optional, not held pricing strategies optional
- optional, not held procurement legislation optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- optional, not held sustainable manufacturing optional
- optional, not held train employees optional
21 held skills the purchasing manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role accurately estimate work hours skill
- not needed by the target role advise on risk management skill
- not needed by the target role analyse business plans skill
- not needed by the target role apply for government funding skill
- not needed by the target role assess financial viability skill
- not needed by the target role business strategy concepts knowledge
- not needed by the target role conflict management knowledge
- not needed by the target role control financial resources skill
- not needed by the target role ensure cross-department cooperation skill
- not needed by the target role estimate duration of work skill
- not needed by the target role estimate profitability skill
- not needed by the target role financial forecasting knowledge
- not needed by the target role forecast workload skill
- not needed by the target role human resource management knowledge
- not needed by the target role labour legislation knowledge
- not needed by the target role manage human resources skill
- not needed by the target role manage sub-contract labour skill
- not needed by the target role perform project management skill
- not needed by the target role perform resource planning skill
- not needed by the target role programme work according to incoming orders skill
- not needed by the target role project management knowledge
8 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 quality standards required
- optional, not held category specific expertise optional
- optional, not held market pricing optional
- optional, not held procurement lifecycle optional
- optional, not held international business optional
- optional, not held pricing strategies optional
- optional, not held procurement legislation optional
- optional, not held sustainable manufacturing optional
Common questions about this move
Can a resource manager become a purchasing manager?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A resource manager already covers 56% of what a purchasing manager is expected to do: 22 skills carry over, 18 of which the purchasing manager role treats as required.
What skills does a resource manager need to become a purchasing manager?
7 required skills are missing, plus 24 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is coordinate purchasing activities.
How hard is the move from resource manager to purchasing manager?
Its learning distance is 52.8 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.