Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Supply chain manager to ICT buyer

A supply chain manager already meets 46% of what the ICT buyer role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From supply chain manager
46 % overlap
Partial match
To ICT buyer
14 You already bring
9 Still to learn
35 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Substantial retraining

56.7/ 100

1 How much of what an ICT buyer is expected to do is already part of a supply chain 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 ICT buyer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

An ICT buyer role treats 10 of its required skills as things a supply chain manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • analyse supply chain strategies
  • carry out tendering
  • coordinate purchasing activities
  • identify suppliers
  • maintain contract administration
  • maintain relationship with customers

What stands in the way is 9 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An ICT buyer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a supply chain manager background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held track price trends information skills
  • already held carry out tendering management skills
  • already held coordinate purchasing activities communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held maintain contract administration information skills
  • already held manage logistics management skills
  • already held analyse supply chain strategies information skills

All 14 carried skills, including the 10 the ICT buyer role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 21 missing skills fall into 8 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.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 business, administration and law 3 required, 4 supplementary
  • still to learn manufacturer's recommended price required
  • still to learn product comprehension required
  • still to learn contract law required
  • optional, not held ICT market optional
  • optional, not held business requirements techniques optional
  • optional, not held hardware components suppliers optional
  • optional, not held procurement legislation optional
02 communication, collaboration and creativity 2 required
  • still to learn compare contractors' bids required
  • still to learn perform procurement processes required
03 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn electronic communication required
  • optional, not held emergent technologies optional
04 information skills 1 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn prepare purchasing reportings required
  • optional, not held identify ICT user needs optional
05 assisting and caring 1 required
  • still to learn adhere to organisational guidelines required
06 management skills 1 required
  • still to learn issue purchase orders required

2 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries an ICT buyer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 14 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held analyse supply chain strategies skill
  • already held carry out tendering skill
  • already held coordinate purchasing activities skill
  • already held identify suppliers skill
  • already held maintain contract administration skill
  • already held maintain relationship with customers skill
  • already held maintain relationship with suppliers skill
  • already held manage contracts skill
  • already held negotiate buying conditions skill
  • already held track price trends skill
  • already held carry out statistical forecasts skill
  • already held manage logistics skill
  • already held perform project management skill
  • already held supply chain management knowledge
The 2 learning areas not shown above
Skill to pick up Tier
07 information and communication technologies (icts) 5 supplementary
  • optional, not held business ICT systems optional
  • optional, not held hardware platforms optional
  • optional, not held software components libraries optional
  • optional, not held software components suppliers optional
  • optional, not held hardware components optional
08 working with computers 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held use e-procurement optional
12 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held ICT market optional
  • optional, not held business ICT systems optional
  • optional, not held business requirements techniques optional
  • optional, not held hardware components suppliers optional
  • optional, not held hardware platforms optional
  • optional, not held identify ICT user needs optional
  • optional, not held software components libraries optional
  • optional, not held software components suppliers optional
  • optional, not held use e-procurement optional
  • optional, not held emergent technologies optional
  • optional, not held hardware components optional
  • optional, not held procurement legislation optional
85 held skills the ICT buyer role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • 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 advise on sustainable management policies skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse business plans skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse consumer buying trends skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse economic trends skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse logistic changes skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse logistic needs skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse market financial trends skill
  • not needed by the target role analyse supply chain trends skill
  • not needed by the target role apply change management 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 assess supplier risks skill
  • not needed by the target role assist in planning production scheduling skill
  • not needed by the target role attend trade fairs skill
  • not needed by the target role business strategy concepts knowledge
  • not needed by the target role calculate purchasing levels of raw materials skill
  • 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 control trade commercial documentation skill
  • not needed by the target role corporate social responsibility knowledge
  • not needed by the target role develop professional network skill
  • not needed by the target role direct logistical functions skill
  • not needed by the target role economics knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ensure cross-department cooperation skill
  • not needed by the target role ensure equipment availability skill
  • not needed by the target role estimate costs of required supplies 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 follow company standards skill
  • not needed by the target role forecast dividend trends skill
  • not needed by the target role forecast economic trends skill
  • not needed by the target role forecast future levels of business skill
  • not needed by the target role forecast production quantities skill
  • not needed by the target role forecast products' demand skill
  • not needed by the target role forecast sales over periods of time skill
  • not needed by the target role forecast workload skill
  • not needed by the target role geographical routes knowledge

45 further entries not listed here

14 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn manufacturer's recommended price required
  • still to learn product comprehension required
  • still to learn contract law required
  • still to learn electronic communication required
  • optional, not held ICT market optional
  • optional, not held business ICT systems optional
  • optional, not held business requirements techniques optional
  • optional, not held hardware components suppliers optional
  • optional, not held hardware platforms optional
  • optional, not held software components libraries optional
  • optional, not held software components suppliers optional
  • optional, not held emergent technologies optional
  • optional, not held hardware components optional
  • optional, not held procurement legislation optional
Index

Other moves recorded from supply chain manager

Full index of moves from supply chain manager

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a supply chain manager become an ICT buyer?

Yes, and it is a substantial move. A supply chain manager already covers 46% of what an ICT buyer is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 10 of which the ICT buyer role treats as required.

What skills does a supply chain manager need to become an ICT buyer?

9 required skills are missing, plus 12 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by business, administration and law. The single most important is issue purchase orders.

How hard is the move from supply chain manager to ICT buyer?

Its learning distance is 56.7 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

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.