Procurement Clerks
Compile information and records to draw up purchase orders for procurement of materials and services.
Also known as: Buyer, Departmental Buyer, Expeditor, Film Replacement Orderer, Procurement Agent, Procurement Analyst, Procurement Assistant, Procurement Clerk, ...
Annual Salary
Median annual wage (May 2024)
Job Outlook
Projected growth, 2024–2034 (Declining)
What You'd Do
- Prepare purchase orders and send copies to suppliers and to departments originating requests.
- Determine if inventory quantities are sufficient for needs, ordering more materials when necessary.
- Respond to customer and supplier inquiries about order status, changes, or cancellations.
- Perform buying duties when necessary.
- Contact suppliers to schedule or expedite deliveries and to resolve shortages, missed or late deliveries, and other problems.
- Review requisition orders to verify accuracy, terminology, and specifications.
- Prepare, maintain, and review purchasing files, reports and price lists.
- Compare prices, specifications, and delivery dates to determine the best bid among potential suppliers.
- Track the status of requisitions, contracts, and orders.
- Calculate costs of orders, and charge or forward invoices to appropriate accounts.
- Check shipments when they arrive to ensure that orders have been filled correctly and that goods meet specifications.
- Compare suppliers' bills with bids and purchase orders to verify accuracy.
- Locate suppliers, using sources such as catalogs and the internet, and interview them to gather information about products to be ordered.
- Maintain knowledge of all organizational and governmental rules affecting purchases, and provide information about these rules to organization staff members and to vendors.
- Monitor in-house inventory movement and complete inventory transfer forms for bookkeeping purposes.
- Approve and pay bills.
- Monitor contractor performance, recommending contract modifications when necessary.
- Prepare invitation-of-bid forms, and mail forms to supplier firms or distribute forms for public posting.
- Train and supervise subordinates and other staff.
Top Skills
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Knowledge Areas
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Education Level Distribution
Percentage of workers in this occupation by education level
Technology & Tools
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In-Demand Technologies
Other Tools
Work Styles
Personality traits and work styles important for this career
Key Abilities
Cognitive, physical, and sensory abilities important for this role
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Work Activities
General types of job behaviors occurring on this job
Importance scale: 1 (low) – 5 (high)
Work Environment
Physical and social factors that influence the nature of work
Related Careers
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Salary data: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024. Outlook data: BLS Employment Projections, 2024–2034.
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.2 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license.