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Do you have what it takes to make the most important decisions for your workplace? As a purchasing manager, you can impress employers by demonstrating your team leading ability, as well as shrewd negotiation skills and a keen eye for spotting opportunities. Put these into words with our purchasing manager CV example.
With advice on CV formatting, writing your CV, and choosing the right skills and work experience, you’ll find everything you need to create a striking CV recruiters will love – along with professional CV templates to help your CV look the part.
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Purchasing manager CV templates
Purchasing manager CV top tips
If creating purchasing strategies and finding the best deals for businesses sounds like your dream career, then this could be the perfect job for you. Here are some key purchasing manager tips to help you create a great CV...
Understand the structure
When writing a purchasing manager CV, there’s a key structure that you’ll need to follow. Traditionally, CVs will contain these elements:
Contact details – You'll need to include your full name, phone number and email address for employers to get in touch.
Personal statement – A short summary, about 3-4 sentences long, covering the details of what makes you stand out as an applicant.
Work history – This lists your previous job roles, with details of duties and major achievements.
Academic history – Including your relevant qualifications and academic achievements.
Skills – These are your core skills that are relevant to the purchasing manager job description.
Keep it relevant
Your CV is there to help you reach out for that perfect job, so it’s important not to confuse or distract recruiters by padding it out with irrelevant information. Keep your CV to one page, and focus on the work experience that illustrates you can meet the key competencies of a purchasing manager. Using reverse chronological formatting can make the most relevant aspects of your career instantly stand out. This CV format works through your career backwards, starting with your most recent position, making it easy for employers to follow.
Read (and reread) the job description
The job description specifies the ideal candidate that employers are looking for. As you read, note down the key qualifications, skills, and work experience that overlaps with your own CV. If there’s some work experience you don’t have, think about whether you’ve had similar experience in other job roles. For example, a purchasing manager job description might request experience in management. You might be new to the purchasing manager role itself, but you may already have experience in project management and budget management from previous roles.
Showcase your achievements
Your work and academic history should be more than just a list of what you worked on or studied. Highlighting your major achievements shows recruiters how well you align with the experience and skills of the purchasing manager role. Rather than telling recruiters you “managed the company budget”, let them know about how you “increased savings to 10% by negotiating prices and managing vendor contracts”.
Make it professional
Purchasing managers need to be professional, and that counts for your CV too! The first step is to choose a purchasing manager CV template that looks the part. CV templates structure your CV, so there’s no need to waste time creating complex designs yourself. Once your CV is complete, don’t be tempted to send it off right away – always double check for spelling and grammar errors first.
Purchasing manager CV skills to impress employers
There are many core skills required for a purchasing manager role, and you need to incorporate as many of them as possible into your CV. Here are the main CV skills to include...
Core skills for a purchasing manager CV
- Project management
- Budgeting
- Negotiation
- Finances
- Strategic planning
- Communication skills
Additional skills for a stand-out CV
- Detail-oriented
- Analytical skills
- Team leadership
- Problem solving
- Time management
- Calm under pressure
Purchasing manager CV FAQs
What is the role of a purchase manager?
The job description of a purchasing manager involves purchasing products, equipment, and services for a company, ensuring the employer receives the highest-quality supplies at a reasonable price. A purchasing manager is integral to the successful running of a company as they plan and implement strategies to ensure the business always receives the best deal when procuring supplies, creating financial savings where possible.
What are the duties and responsibilities of a purchasing manager?
The duties of a purchasing manager include identifying and sourcing goods and services required by the company, researching into the right products and suppliers, liaising and building relationships with suppliers, managing the procurement team, ensuring that products supplied are of a high standard, reviewing contracts to ensure the company is receiving the best deal, managing procurement budgets, recording and analysing data about company purchases, and training new purchasing staff where required. You should ensure you highlight your competency at meeting these responsibilities throughout your purchasing manager CV, from your personal statement to your skills and work history.
How to be a good purchasing manager?
A successful purchasing manager has great research and negotiation skills to drive a hard bargain for their employer. They know how to manage a team – and their time management and organisational skills are impeccable. They have an in-depth understanding of finances and budgeting, and can interpret data accurately and with ease. They’re also fantastic communicators, and can form strong connections with staff and suppliers alike. As part of the purchasing manager interview questions, recruiters will likely quiz you on your experience in these areas, so when you’re writing a CV, make sure you can illustrate each of these competencies with specific examples from your career.
How to become a purchasing manager?
There are many different pathways to becoming a purchasing manager, and they vary between sectors and organisations. When it comes to the education of a purchasing manager, generally, employers will want to see applications from graduates, particularly those with degrees in purchasing and supply chain management or business. In other cases, there might be trainee or advanced apprenticeship schemes to train candidates for the role. Experience in purchasing is also highly important to employers, so you could also start with an entry-level position, such as a purchasing assistant, then work your way up. Key qualifications for a purchasing manager job also include the accredited qualifications by the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply.
What is the average salary for a purchasing manager?
The average purchasing manager salary in the UK is approximately £40,000 per year. However, the purchasing manager payscale can vary. Entry-level positions bring in about £25,000 per year, whilst experienced candidates can expect upwards of £50,000 per year.
Writing a purchasing manager CV personal statement
When recruiters pick up your CV, they need to know instantly that you’re a good fit for the role. Your personal statement shows them just that. Only 3-4 sentences long, a personal statement is a short summary that highlights exactly what makes you perfect for the job.
It shouldn’t be copied and pasted from your purchasing manager cover letter or work history. Instead, it should briefly cover the major achievements of your career, along with the key skills and awards that make you stand out.
Related CVs Purchasing
Get started with a purchasing manager CV template
Your CV needs to make a great first impression, so professionality is a must. Once you’ve read through our CV help and tips, it’s time to make use of our online CV builder to create a unique, professional CV that employers can’t ignore.
Simply choose a purchasing manager CV template, type in some key details from your career, and the online builder will add some amazing pre-written content to bring everything to life, from your skills to your work and academic history.
