A Day In The Life of a Purchasing Manager

Purchasing managers are completely integral to the success of your company. While it can be easy to overlook what they do, it’s clear that without them, operations would crumble. From the procurement of raw goods and packaging to the oversight of material management, your purchasing manager’s daily decisions will influence virtually every part of your business.  

In addition, purchasing managers typically act as the primary point of contact with buyers and suppliers. They represent their companies when it comes to forming and negotiating contracts and policies with suppliers. 

This means that your purchasing manager is responsible for getting your company what it needs to operate—and, often, just how much it will affect your product safety (and your bottom line). Let’s follow a purchasing manager throughout their typical day to see just how they make all of these critical decisions. 

What does a purchasing manager do?

The nature of a purchasing manager’s specific 9-5 will depend on where in the month—or purchasing cycle—a day falls. For example, in the first week of the month, a purchasing manager might put in an entire month’s worth of orders—or more!

In order to do this well, on a day-to-day basis, a purchasing manager needs to be aware of what’s happening around them. Many of the activities they might routinely tackle involve taking a comprehensive picture of just how their company and their industry are doing.

For example, a purchasing manager might spend the day: 

• Checking the amount of products, units, or raw materials in their company’s inventory
• Using past reporting or reasonable projections to come up with a logical idea of how much more material their company might need (also called forecasting)
• Researching current world events or conditions that could influence those calculations
• Attending production planning meetings to understand output demands 
• Making any needed adjustments to upcoming orders
• Managing communication with the rest of their team to set helpful, accurate expectations regarding incoming units or products
• Reviewing past orders and recurring orders for 100 percent accuracy
• Reaching out to buyers and suppliers for any needed clarifications

Your purchasing manager will take care of all of this and more so your company can function smoothly. 

Dive into what a great purchasing manager can do for you.

It’s as simple as this: If your company doesn’t have precisely the right amount of packaging or raw materials at exactly the right time, you’re going to have a lot of logistical issues. You may not be able to proceed with operations or fulfill orders if you don’t have what you need—and if you source too much or the wrong kind of any needed products or materials, you could end up wasting a lot of time and money.

For example, when a purchasing manager is faced with choosing an integral product—such as food-grade bulk bags—they need to strike a delicate balance between: 

• Meeting the requirements from corporate to reduce costs
• Meeting the needs of the company to work efficiently and effectively
• Making sure the bag can meet the demands of production
• Ensuring the bag can endure the rigors of transport and storage
• Confirming that the bag will result in a good experience for the end customer

In other words, there’s a lot going on. A great purchasing manager must fulfill all of these internal and external demands seamlessly. Trust us when we say that this is completely invaluable. 

From issuing strategic orders based on real-time information to handling communication, building in contingencies, and more, your purchasing manager is constantly creating and refining an internal “recipe” to understand supply and demand requirements. When your company flows well, they’re the reason why. 

Learn how Conitex Sonoco can help your purchasing managers.

Whenever you need to get a pulse on exactly how your company’s materials management is doing, your purchasing manager is a good person to ask. 

They’re also a great source for up-to-date information about the best ways to save your company money on recurring purchases—and they’re the ones who establish the relationships that make your day-to-day operations possible. 

Making their lives easier by choosing reliable vendors who know what they’re doing will be well worth everyone’s time. At Conitex Sonoco, we’re proud to provide safe, high-quality packaging materials for the food industry, but we’re also proud to be the type of supplier with whom you and your purchasing managers will want to work.

For reliable industry information, quick communication, and packaging solutions you can always turn to Conitex Sonoco. Reach out to our friendly representatives today to learn more about what we can do for you.