I hope that you have enjoyed the article “Tips For Advancing Your Procurement Career.”

The article goes over reasons hiring managers may be reluctant to hire certain procurement professionals for higher-level procurement jobs, regardless of their experience.  The article goes over ways that procurement professionals can overcome this reluctance.

I want to take a slightly different approach to this post.  I want to discuss the lack of procurement experience as a barrier to getting started on their procurement career.

Even some entry-level procurement positions require prior procurement experience.  So how can you get procurement experience when even entry-level procurement jobs require prior procurement experience?

Well, instead of seeking a sub-optimal, low-level procurement job just for the sake of experience, you can potentially leverage the business experience you do have.  A procurement department interfaces to some degree with almost every other department within an organization:  finance, engineering, sales, production, logistics, etc.  So, if you get to the interview stage, be sure to ask which department(s) the role supports.  If you have experience in one of those departments, emphasize how well you know the department’s operations and how you can use that knowledge to enable the procurement department to provide better support than ever.

If you are applying for a procurement management position and don’t have procurement experience but have management experience, emphasize your management experience.  Most aspects of procurement are things that almost any intelligent person can learn, but not everyone is a born leader.  If you are, then share your track record of leadership and talk about the management principles that you can apply in a procurement role.

Regardless of what prejudices hiring managers have against you, you can overcome most of them through smart planning.  Good luck in getting your procurement career off to a successful start!

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Recommended Reading

• SPSM vs. CPO Suite
• Are You Chief Procurement Officer Material?
• The Procurement Promotion That You Lost (But Didn’t Even Know That You Were Considered For)
• Improving Your Procurement Team’s Skills Requires This Commonly Forgotten Element
• Are Your Purchasing Job Descriptions Outdated?
• Tips For Advancing Your Procurement Career
• How to Take Charge of Your Procurement Career

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