Procurement Salary 2021 – Benchmarks & Negotiation Tips

Despite the economic anxiety faced by the world today, the level of procurement salary for professionals who want to get a career in this industry remains strong as ever. This is because most of the procurement processes have already undergone a digital transformation, even before the whole pandemic started.

Today, you are going to learn more about the benchmarks of the procurement salary. You will also learn how to negotiate your way into getting the salary you’d want as a procurement manager. 

Once you’re done reading this article, you should now have an idea of how to make a lot of money thanks to a good procurement salary rate!

The Salary Details of the Procurement Manager

In the latest content provided by the CIPS/Hays Salary Guide, the average procurement salary for the North American procurement manager is $96,361. It does sound like a really good rate for anyone working in the procurement department. 

How about Glassdoor? If we take a look at the website, the procurement specialist salary rate is $63,007 per year. That is for the procurement specialist, which is the entry-level rank in the procurement department. The price goes up for the high-level procurement jobs. Those who are in the Purchasing department can earn $52,856 while purchasing specialists can earn up to $55,902 per year. 

Apart from the good salary rate, there’s also a 4.6% average salary increase and a 12.9% chance for an average bonus. And despite the COVID pandemic, around 76% of procurement managers received a bonus in the last year. Of course, the rate only includes those who are eligible. That means procurement managers who’ve worked hard and are the best in what they do.

What are the Different Procurement Specialist Roles?

We all know what a procurement manager does, but what exactly are the other procurement specialist roles? 

For that, we created this very simple table so that you can completely understand each role at once.

Editor's note:

The Negotiation Game Changer Certificate Program teaches you:

• the skills needed to drive better, fact-based decisions that ultimately benefit both organizations and its employees.
• a comprehensive analytics skill set that will enable you to achieve deals with results you have been dreaming of.

How to become a Procurement Specialist?

Since we’ve already covered how profitable a procurement manager’s salary is, it’s time to talk about how to become one as well. To become a procurement manager or specialist, you’ll need to finish a degree in either logistics, supply chain management, and/or procurement. 

Being a fresh graduate from any of these courses can help you land a job as a procurement specialist, which is an entry-level job in a procurement team. But if you want to get hired as a procurement manager, then that’s a different story.

To become a procurement manager, one of the best ways to do so is to earn your MCIPS. The MCIPS is an internationally recognized award that showcases procurement managers who have excelled in their responsibilities. Around 32% of companies that are interested in hiring only the best procurement managers require their applicants to have MCIPS. 

This only goes to show that the procurement industry remains strong as ever.

As for the soft skills department, candidates should have the following skills:

• Negotiation
• Communication
• Supplier Relationship Management
• Leadership
• Sourcing
• Internal Stakeholder Management

The ability to negotiate remains the strongest skill that is desirable among procurement specialists. That’s because for a procurement process to work, a procurement specialist must have the skills necessary to get the best quality product or service at a good price no matter what the other party throws at you and your team. And the only way to do that is through flawless negotiation skills. 

And with negotiation skills, you can get those and more from our Negotiation Gamechanger Course!

Communication, SRM, and Leadership are also high on the list of abilities needed to become a procurement manager because you will be managing different people with different skills within a procurement team. There is a 26% chance for a procurement team to grow and add more members this year. 

Sourcing and Internal Stakeholder Management are also important skills to master since the procurement manager is always expected to be on the lookout for better quality supplies for the growth of the company.

The Negotiation Tips – How to Get the Right Procurement Specialist Salary

So we’ve come to the most exciting part of the article. 

After you’re done with the interviews and the skills test, you’ve come to the part where you need to negotiate for your salary. Since we know that the procurement specialist salary is a profitable one, getting the best rate must be the priority. Also, you can take this opportunity to take your negotiation skills to the test as well!

But why should you negotiate for your salary? If the company is offering you a good rate already for the procurement job, then that’s the best that they can do, right? The answer for this is that if you don’t negotiate your asking salary rate, it’d be detrimental to your lifelong earning potential. If the current rate that you’ve accepted is 10% below the current salary rate, it could take over two years to regain your lost earnings.

So when do you negotiate for your salary? Typically, it is always done once you’ve received an offer from the other party or the company. You don’t go charging in and ask for the procurement agent salary that you’d like; you need to pass the initial interviews and the exams before you can get the chance to do that. 

Also, remember to do counter-offers only once or twice during the negotiation. Putting too many counter-offers will make you come off as greedy and desperate. It will make you look bad in the eyes of the hiring manager or operations manager and they will immediately walk out of the negotiations at once. And when talking about the compensation package, you should avoid revisiting it if you’ve already agreed on it. Doing so shows that you respect the employer’s time.  

So to get the best possible salary rate, you’ll need to do the following:

Evaluate what you have to offer – Think of how much value you can offer to your employer by hiring you. Are you situated in a location where the costs of living are high? Are you a tenured procurement manager or are you just starting from scratch? The same can also be asked for your leadership capabilities; how long have you managed a team of procurement specialists? There’s also your educational level, your skills, licenses, and certifications. Think of all these things and then evaluate just how much should your asking rate be and it should sound fair and good as to what you can offer to the company.

Research the market average – We’ve already covered this part. Know that the average procurement salary rate in North America is at 4.6% and is still growing. This should be part of your pre-interview research. If you do get an offer and you want to negotiate for it, always keep in mind the market average for the said procurement salary.

Preparing your Talking Points – Remember the point of any negotiation. It’s to convince the other party to accept your offer. In the case of negotiating for your salary rate, it is always helpful to put together a series of questions as a framework for your negotiations. Details might include the following:

• Years of industry experience. This is always a popular topic during an interview, especially if you have more experience compared to what is being required in the job description.
• Skills and certifications will always come up as questions. Always be ready once asked.
• Average salaries being offered by other companies for the same position might also come up with the discussion.
• A prospective employer will also be interested in the results you’ve achieved in previous roles. If you were once a procurement manager and you are looking to become Director of Procurement in a different company, your interviewer will most likely ask you those questions.

Schedule the Right Time for the Discussion – Once you’re done preparing yourself, it’s time to set up a time for the discussion. You can contact the recruiter or the hiring manager for this. While some companies are okay with the applicant sending an email, it is always encouraged to discuss these things over the phone. Phone discussions allow a back-and-forth type of conversation and that is how a negotiation should be. Plus, you also show great interest in the role itself should you call the company to set up an appointment. 

Just remember to be free on the exact appointment date. Nothing ruins a negotiator more than being late for the negotiation itself!

Rehearse, Rehearse – To become successful with your negotiations, you need to build up confidence. And the only way to build confidence is through rehearsing what you’re going to say to the other party. You can always have a script, but it wouldn’t sound too interesting. Also, you’ll be an open book if you’re going to depend on what you’re going to say with the help of a script. If you want to rehearse, do it with a trusted friend. Let him/her become the interviewer and ask questions that might come out during the interview. You can even create mock negotiations as well if you feel that it’s going to help you become confident during the interview. Whatever you do, just make sure that you’re ready to push the offer that you want.

Confidence is the Key – Finally, be confident. It sounds incredibly easy to say, but believe me, confidence takes time and practice. And that’s why you need to do the necessary steps mentioned above. Because you can’t be confident during a negotiation if you’re not ready for what the other party is going to throw at you. 

Always anticipate that the other party is going to throw counter-offers at you if you keep hard balling your desired procurement specialist salary rate. Be confident and level-headed and you will get the salary offer that you want.

FAQ

What is a good procurement salary?

A good procurement salary is always one that is set on the average salary rate for a procurement specialist. It is dependent on statistics based on data gathered.

How to negotiate a procurement salary?

To negotiate a procurement salary, one must have an idea of how much is the average salary rate for the procurement job that he/she wants to apply for. The applicant must also know how to negotiate properly.

Learn how to negotiate for your procurement salary and more!

Check out our Negotiation Gamechanger Course and equip yourself with the best negotiation tactics and secrets that the procurement industry has been keeping from you! 

Learn more from our website at www.procurementtactics.com