16 Key Attributes Purchasing Managers Need To Succeed In Their Career

by Sophia Miller

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Purchasing managers plan, direct, or coordinate the activities of buyers, purchasing officers, and related workers involved in purchasing materials, products, and services. Includes wholesale or retail trade merchandising managers and procurement managers.

The core tasks that purchasing managers are likely to carry out include:

Represent companies in negotiating contracts and formulating policies with suppliers.
Direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in buying, selling, and distributing materials, equipment, machinery, and supplies.
Interview and hire staff, and oversee staff training.
Locate vendors of materials, equipment or supplies, and interview them to determine product availability and terms of sales.
Prepare and process requisitions and purchase orders for supplies and equipment.
Develop and implement purchasing and contract management instructions, policies, and procedures.

In order to successfully forge ahead with their careers, analysts in a survey carried out by U.S. Department of Labor (via O*NET) have marked out the following as important attributes that purchasing managers would need. These attributes have been selected from characteristics and requirements strongly associated with the occupation. They are

Abilities: Enduring attributes of the individual that influence performance
Interests: Preferences for work environments. Occupational Interest Profiles (OIPs) are compatible with Holland's (1985, 1997) model of personality types and work environments. Six interest categories are used to describe the work environment of occupations: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. An OIP consists of six numerical scores indicating how descriptive and characteristic each work environment (or interest area) is for an occupation
Knowledge: Organized sets of principles and facts applying in general domains
Skills: These include basic skills, which are developed capacities that facilitate learning or the more rapid acquisition of knowledge. Plus cross-functional skills, which are developed capacities that facilitate performance of activities that occur across jobs
Style: Personal characteristics that can affect how well someone performs a job

We have listed out attributes which were scored 80% or more in terms of importance by the analysts.

Having a strong preference for enterprising work environments. Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
Attribute Type: Interests Score: 100%

Being honest and ethical.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 98.4%

Maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 87.6%

Being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 87.6%

A willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 86.6%

Accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 85%

Being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 83.4%

Analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 83.4%

A willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 82.4%

Being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 81.6%

Persistence in the face of obstacles.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 81.6%

Being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 81.6%

Establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
Attribute Type: Style Score: 80.8%

Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Attribute Type: Knowledge Score: 80.8%

Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Attribute Type: Knowledge Score: 80%

Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Attribute Type: Skills Score: 80%