Do you want to apply for a Purchasing Manager position to help you get closer to your career goals? Applying for jobs on Seek, LinkedIn, and other job boards can be a time-consuming process, however, to streamline the process, you can ensure your resume writing helps you to stand out from the crowd, and your online profile helps you to get an interview!

If a recruiter or hiring manager are looking for a Purchasing Manager, they are searching for specific transferable skills. With less than ten people being interviewed for the job and hundreds of people, just like you, applying, The Perfect Resume team have created Resume Writing Tips to help you stand out from the others.

What do recruiters look for in a Purchasing Manager resume or an online profile?

Tailoring your resume to a Purchasing Manager position is mandatory today to ensure that your application will pass Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS). In doing so, your resume will be read by the prospective employer. Then, fingers crossed, you will be shortlisted as a potential candidate and be called for not one, but multiple job interviews!

Firstly, before you apply to be a Purchasing Manager, you need to be acquainted with what a Purchasing Manager does!

Purchasing Managers handle the purchasing strategies and purchasing team's daily activities.

Hiring Managers are looking for a highly organised Purchasing Manager to assist in sourcing suppliers and purchasing products, equipment, and services.

To be successful as a Purchasing Manager, you should have knowledge of necessary Manufacturing, Transport, and Logistics procedures, be open to learning, and have strong communication skills. Ultimately, a quality Purchasing Manager should be able to achieve positive relationships with suppliers and optimize purchasing activities and processes.

Knowing this, your resume and online profile should include the hard and soft skills that the recruiter or hiring manager is looking for in a candidate.

The Purchasing Manager position description template will also contain pivotal information about what the candidate will need to do daily. Such as:

• Developing and implementing purchasing strategies.
• Managing daily purchasing activities, supervising staff, and allocating tasks.
• Managing supplier relations and negotiating contracts, prices, timelines, etc.
• Maintaining the supplier database, purchase records, and related documentation.
• Coordinating with inventory control to determine and manage inventory needs.
• Managing the maintenance of office/manufacturing equipment and machinery.
• Ensuring that all procured items meet the required quality standards and specifications.
• Preparing cost estimates and managing budgets.
• Working to improve purchasing systems and processes.
• Training new employees in the purchasing process and how to use the purchasing system.

You will also have some requirements and personal attributes that you will need to demonstrate in your resume to ensure your potential employer will take your application seriously, such as:

• Degree in business administration or a related field.
• Experience as a purchasing manager or in a similar position.
• Deep knowledge of inventory and supply chain management.
• Supervisory and management experience.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and purchasing software.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Strong critical thinking and negotiation skills.
• Strong planning and organizational skills.
• Ability to work independently.

You may also want to do some industry research to find out what other companies want in their Purchasing Managers.