Your guide to writing a purchaser executive job description to hire top talent

Purchasing executives do more than just buy goods and services for your company. They protect the interest of your establishment by buying at the right time for the right price. 

By observing the market to identify supply patterns, trends, and changes, purchase executives try to ensure that your business gets optimal value for the amount you’ve spent on a supply. 

Even after writing an excellent purchase executive job description, hiring the right purchasing candidate can be tricky. TestGorilla’s Purchase Executive test provides a solution by enabling you to assess applicants’ abilities to source materials and services as purchasers.

In this article, we’ll explore the most important elements required in a purchaser executive job description and provide a sample of what it should look like. Let’s dive in.

What is a purchaser executive?

A purchaser executive buys products and services for your organization. Although they may also sometimes buy for third parties or resell to customers, they are in charge of the trading operations of your organization. 

Purchaser executives serve as middlemen between you and the market. They liaise with various vendors to find the best deal in compliance with your standards. Also, they could play the role of quality assurance managers, depending on their job description. Additionally, you might instead write a job description for a purchase manager if you’re looking for a candidate with supervisory experience to take on leadership responsibilities.

What does a purchaser executive do?

Purchasing executives focus on buying goods, materials, and services on your behalf for the daily running of your establishment. They are in charge of researching vendors, examining prospective suppliers, and negotiating pricing and contract terms.

They also perform other duties such as preparing reports, tracking orders, ensuring timely deliveries, and reviewing the quality of purchased products. Purchaser executives work full-time and form a critical part of your team.  

What to include in a purchaser executive job description? 

A good purchaser job description includes a company overview, job brief, proposed salary, and an apt description of the responsibilities, skills, and qualifications. Sometimes, you may also include what your work environment is like.

Below are some of the features of a good job description:

1. Company overview

The first step toward writing an excellent purchaser job description is to provide a concise description of your establishment. This section serves as an advertisement for your company, outlining why prospective employees should want to join your team.

2. Job brief

This section should include the position’s purpose, importance, and perks. The purchaser role description doesn’t have to be too specific. It provides a general view of what the role entails at your company.

3. Responsibilities

In this section, you need to describe the day-to-day responsibilities of your prospective employee in the most straightforward way possible, usually with bullet points. 

This way, candidates have a clear understanding of your expectations of them if you eventually employ them. 

4. Relevant skills and expertise

Before completing this section, you need to consider the basic skills you need in your future employee. These skills define the core of the role and are therefore essential requirements for your applicants.

5. Preferred skills and qualifications

Here, list specific skills or expertise that will improve an applicant’s chances of getting the position. These abilities are more specific and describe the qualities of your ideal candidate. 

6. Work environment and benefits

In order to attract the best talent, you should include information about your workplace, company culture, benefits, and job expectations. This section should be as practical and realistic as possible. 

7. Proposed salary

Top talent requires generous remuneration. Thus, including a decent salary at the end of your job description is vital because it will serve as a motivation for the right applicant to apply. The annual average salary of a purchaser manager is $70,615. 

Sample of a purchaser executive job description

Company overview

Redbook Marketing specializes in optimizing the quality of food delivery customers receive across South Africa. This limited liability company (LLC) is in Johannesburg, South Africa. 

Redbook was founded 10 years ago by Lucas Smith, an expert in shipping arrangement, trade, and delivery. This company aims to continue to innovate software that will create rewarding experiences for our clients.

Job brief 

Our company is expanding, and we need a qualified purchasing executive to oversee our purchasing transactions. 

This position will require you to choose production materials and services, procure fixed assets and tooling, and source indirect materials for the company. You are to ensure the supply chain group delivers tasks quickly.

Purchasing manager responsibilities 

For this purchaser position, we will require the following from you:

• Prepare presentation reports

• Create purchasing strategies

• Prepare cost estimates and manage budgets

• Research sourcing for new suppliers and vendors

• Manage records of all orders, payments, and business stock

Required skills and qualifications

Our company mandates that you have the following qualifications to be considered for this role:

• Flexibility and adaptability

• Public relations and management

• Nine years experience as a purchaser executive

• Excellent negotiation skills

• Proficient in English (verbal and written)

• Excellent analytical skills

Desirable skills

• Proficient in either French, Spanish, or Italian  (verbal and written)

• Ability to manipulate data with spreadsheets in Excel

• Foundational knowledge of project management

• Sales management and palnning 

Work environment Benefits

Our company provides the following to ensure we create a conducive work environment:

• Immersive work environment to learn and grow

• Opportunity to work with experts on various projects

• Seven-hour shifts

• Dental Insurance

• Health insurance

• Bonus pay

• Retirement plan

Proposed salary

Successful applicants will earn between $70,000 and $80,000 per year. This salary structure is subject to a 15% increase every four years.

How to identify expert purchase executives?

Excellent purchase executives will help save your business money by identifying vendors and suppliers with the best rates, products, services, and prices.

Below are some qualities an expert purchase executive should have:

• Market experience: An expert purchase executive must be familiar with the market to identify the best deals and vendors who will favor your business.

The supply market is unstructured, and only the top purchase executives know their way around it.

• Good initiative: Your purchase manager should use their initiative to discover and determine the right supplier to make profitable business relationships for you. Striking deals in your best interest should be second nature to them.  

• Industry knowledge: Top purchase managers have commercial awareness regarding the product or service and must be conversant with government regulations. Knowledge of these things helps optimize the strategies that you implement.

Receiving applications from candidates is one thing but selecting the right one is far more challenging. Your recruitment strategy must be effective enough to identify the most suitable person for the role. 

Integrating a pre-employment test in your recruitment can work wonders. It saves you time by eliminating resume screening while ensuring you hire objectively and without bias.

Register with TestGorilla for free today to modernize your recruitment process and transform your hiring for the better.