Being a Purchasing Manager would allow me to help people see things the way I do. It would allow me to buy things for the best prices I can get.  I love to hear business people talk because it is like another language to me. It is so much fun to sit and listen to people talking about a business. When they talk about their business plans and becoming an LLC, PPC or PC, or if they’re going to get stock holders to buy into their business, it excites me.  I work for Super One grocery store and when I purchased things for the produce department it gave me a sense of empowerment. I am able to talk to people easily.  In this position I might have angry customers who didn’t get their product on time, and would have to please them and my company, so I would need to be able to handle conflict.  I would need to have good communication skills and be able to speak clearly and be a good listener.  My dad has been a purchasing manager for 30 years and for a few companies. My dad loved what he did and he used to take me to his office all the time after school. He used to show me everything that he did. It always looked like so much fun. It also looked really hard but I believe that I can do this job. This is why I want to be a purchasing manager. I feel that I could make a good living while supporting myself/ future family and hobbies.

I think that this career would fit into my life because I can work during the day and have evenings off to do the things I love.  I really like to travel by plane, enjoy being outside riding my ATV, shooting, hunting, working on my truck, and being with family and friends.  I would be comfortable talking with people all day, and making decisions about how to spend other peoples’ money.

If I was going to be in this occupation I would need at least a bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Administration. I would also need another two years of internship. I would need to go to a college that has a good Business program like the University of Montana.  They have a good reputation for a business graduates who are qualified to hire right out of college.  The University of Montana requires that I have three years of math but they would prefer four. To be accepted into the business department of the university I need to pass all the graduation requirements for the high school and then have one credit of world geography, one credit of math three, and a 2.5 GPA or rank in top half of class or ACT score of twenty two.

I would probably start at the buyer level and work my way up to Materials/Purchasing Manager.  When you work for a company who makes a certain product, different people are assigned different clients and they work with them directly after the sales team has started working with the client. I would buy goods or services for the company I work for, where some buyers purchase goods for resale.  My next step would be to negotiate the best price that I could buy the items for and award contracts.  Purchasing Managers usually handle the harder or higher dollar purchases.  A Purchasing manager would usually have a staff of buyers/agents that buy the less expensive or smaller dollar items.  When the buyer or purchasing manager completes the buying process and the pieces are in the warehouse, then production of the product is started.  Then the production line creates the product and it is shipped to the customer.

A Purchasing Manager needs to attend trade shows, meetings and visit suppliers to see if their products are the right quality for the product my company is making.  They need to have knowledge of contract law, negotiations, and inventory control practices. Their education is continuing and they need to stay up to date on new laws and practices.  There are a couple of good organizations that help Purchasing Managers stay educated.  One is NAPM (National Association of Purchasing Managers) and APICS (Association of Purchasing and Inventory Control Specialists).  These two groups’ help their members learn the new laws, provide continuing education credits and help you find jobs in this profession.

To prepare myself for this career in high school I would need to have completed classes in word processing, accounting, introduction to business, business management and banking and finance if they are available to be studied at high school.  English classes are very important for communication skills, such as; language arts, English composition, English grammar and public speaking.  Math classes should include pre-algebra, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, calculus, statistics, business math and computer math.  When I get to college, I would need psychology, consumer law, business law, ethics and economics.

I would always be able to find work in this field because purchasing is done in business management companies, federal, state and local government agencies, navigational and measuring equipment manufactures and grocery products wholesalers.  The national average yearly wage for a purchasing manager is $76,270.00 per year.  If I stay in Montana though, my average wage would be $56,520.00.  My Dad has actually found the wage average to be much lower, more in the range of $30,000.00 per year in Montana. 

I think I would like this profession because it would allow me to be with people everyday, to spend other peoples’ money, to get the most products for the least price, and be in charge of people.  I like the challenge of making people happy, making plenty of money, not doing a dangerous job, and working a normal work week.  This profession would be one where I could grow and learn and make more and more money if I apply myself in learning new skills, and being a reliable employee.