Those who are wishing to enter the job market as a purchasing agent or purchasing manager will be glad to know that the job outlook for purchasing agents is far more favorable than the national average, both when percentages and growth projections are examined. Recent projections indicate that the number of individuals employed as purchasing agents, purchasing managers and buyers will grow as much as seven percent in the upcoming eight years. This is due to the large number of companies that are scaling up the size of their existing purchasing departments as the local and national markets continue to give way to the rapidly expanding global marketplace.
While computers and the internet may have made it easier for purchasing departments to do their job by streamlining the actual purchasing process and creating easier access to product suppliers and manufacturers globally, the Internet has caused purchasing departments to need to take on additional responsibilities such as making computer-related purchases for equipment, hardware and software. In addition, international consumers are now able to utilize the Internet to buy goods that were previously unavailable to those within specific geographic locations. New EDI capabilities within wholesale, retail and manufacturing businesses are also responsible for the creation of additional jobs.
One purchasing industry that may not see as high growth and thus may not have as sunny of a job outlook is the retail purchasing industry. This is because of the effect of mergers and acquisitions. Even for the farm and agriculture product purchasing industries, while there may be more positions, technology will continue to create more automation for certain jobs and others will likely be outsourced, which will greatly limit job growth.
Projections
The industry does not look so bad for the purchasing industry, as detailed above. Projections indicate that there will be many more positions created for those who wish to work as a purchasing manager, purchasing agent or buyer. If you are already working within the industry, this means that you can enjoy a reasonable level of comfort regarding your job security that others in different industries may not be able to have.
If you are to be graduating college soon with a business degree, an economics degree or an engineering degree, you will be glad to know that job prospects look pretty good for those in your position. Here are a few statistics you can consider if you need more specific information regarding your likelihood of landing a job fresh out of college:
- It is projected that the number of jobs for purchasing agents, purchasing managers and buyers will rise by about 38,500 jobs to a grand total of 565,900 jobs in the industry by the year 2018.
- It is projected that the number of purchasing managers will rise by about 1,200 positions to a total of 71,400 jobs in the industry by the year 2018.
- Projections also indicate that positions for purchasing agents and buyers will rise by as much as 37,400 jobs to a total of 494,500 jobs in the industry by the year 2018.
