Blog

Interview Questions to Hire Purchasing Manager

TAble of content
share on

Download this resource!

Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Purchasing Managers are people who purchase and buy things for a company. It could be purchasing of merchandise and raw materials to create products or a person who purchases facilities, consumables, and workwear for a company. It is important to find a purchasing manager who has experience in your industry. 

For example, a purchasing manager in metal recycling will have different knowledge than one in fashion. You should look for candidates who have a high school diploma or above and demonstrate experience as a purchasing agent in the field your company operates. Purchasing manager candidates should have strong communication and negotiation skills, strong attention to detail, and the ability to gather and analyze data, as well as manage and supervise other staff members.

Skill-based questions

It is good practice to ask various types of questions, including skill-based, role-specific, behavioral, and situational questions, to identify strong candidates.

  • What types of materials have you purchased in your previous roles?
  • Why is negotiation in purchasing important?
  • What systems have you used to manage to purchase?
  • How do you build relationships with suppliers?
  • What types of personnel have you managed in your previous roles?
  • Have you ever implemented purchasing processes?

Situational & Behavioural questions

  • You have a supplier of raw materials that have raised their prices significantly. What do you do?
  • If a supplier is consistently late in delivering your stock, what impact might this have on the business?
  • You are asked to produce reports on the purchasing process. How do you gather this data?
  • You are asked to find new suppliers for all the raw materials the company needs. How do you start this process, and what is important?
  • Tell me about a time you have worked to tight deadlines.

General Questions

  • What are some things you would like to achieve in your work career within the next five years?
  • What have you done in your career so far to learn and develop yourself professionally?
  • Why did you decide to enter the purchasing industry?
  • What are the top three skills you have that you think you can transfer to this role?
  • Why have you applied for this role? How do you think you will benefit from working in the role?

Conclusion

The questions above will help you to identify quality candidates who are going through your recruitment process. Remember to look for candidates who demonstrate strong communication and negotiation skills, a keen eye for detail, and analytical abilities, along with the confidence to manage and supervise other team members when required.

Explore how Manatal can Fit
your Business

Receive an overview of Manatal platform from a product expert.

Get started with Manatal

Our 14-day free trial allows anyone to explore the platform without commitment, while our team is committed to providing support and guidance throughout the process.
Data migration from your existing recruitment software
Team training for a fast and smooth onboarding
Transparent and flexible pricing without lock-in contract
Highest security protocol as standard (SOC II Type 2)
24 / 5 support availability via live chat
All-in-one platform covering all your recruitment needs

Transform the Way You Recruit Today.

World-leading Recruitment Software for Talent Acquisition and Recruitment Professionals.
900,000+
Recruitment processes managed.
10,000+
Active recruiting teams.
135+
Countries.
Bill Twinning
Talent Resources & Development Director - Charoen Pokphand Group
Manatal is the best ATS we worked with. Simplicity, efficency and the latest technologies combined make it an indispensable tool for any large-scale HR team. Since its adoption, we've seen a huge increase across all our key recruitment metrics. To summarize, it is a must-have.
Ahmed Firdaus
Director - MRI Network, Executive Search Firm
I've been using Manatal for the past couple of months and the platform is excellent, user-friendly and it has helped me a lot in my recruitment process, operation and database management. I'm very happy with their great support. Whenever I ask something they come back to me within minutes.
Dina Demajo
Senior Talent Acquisition - Manpower Group
Manpower has been using Manatal and we couldn't be happier as a team with the services this platform has provided. The application is extremely user-friendly and very well equipped with all the useful functions one would required for successful recruitment. The support team is also excellent with very fast response time.
Edmund Yeo
Human Resources Manager - Oakwood
Manatal is a sophisticated, easy-to-use, mobile-friendly, and cloud-based applicant tracking system that helps companies achieve digitalization and seamless integration to Linkedin and other job boards. The team at Manatal is very supportive, helpful, prompt in their replies and we were pleased to see that the support they offer exceeded our expectations.
Maxime Ferreira
International Director - JB Hired
Manatal has been at the core of our agency's expansion. Using it has greatly improved and simplified our recruitment processes. Incredibly easy and intuitive to use, customizable to a tee, and offers top-tier live support. Our recruiters love it. A must-have for all recruitment agencies. Definitely recommend!
Ngoc-Thinh Tran
HR Manager, Talent Sourcing & Acquisition - Suntory PepsiCo Beverage
I am using Manatal for talent sourcing and it is the best platform ever. I am so impressed, the Manatal team did an excellent work. This is so much awesome, I am recommending the solution to all recruiters I know.
Bill Twinning
Talent Resources & Development Director - Charoen Pokphand Group
Manatal is the best ATS we worked with. Simplicity, efficency and the latest technologies combined make it an indispensable tool for any large-scale HR team. Since its adoption, we've seen a huge increase across all our key recruitment metrics. To summarize. it is a must-have.
Ahmed Firdaus
Director - MRINetwork, Executive Search Firm
I've been using Manatal for the past couple of months and the platform is excellent, user-friendly and it has helped me a lot in my recruitment process, operation and database management. I'm very happy with their great support. whenever I asked something they come back to me within minutes.
Dina Demajo
Senior Talent Acquisition - Manpower Group
Manpower has been using Manatal and we couldn't be happier as a team with the services this platform has provided. The application is extremely user-friendly and very well equipped with all the useful functions one would required for successful requirement. The support team is also excellent with very fast response time.
Kevin Martin
Human Resources Manager - Oakwood
Manatal is a sophisticated, easy-to-use, mobile-friendly, and cloud-based applicant tracking system that helps companies achieve digitalization and seamless integration to Linkedin and other job boards. The team at Manatal is very supportive, helpful, prompt in their replies and we were pleased to see that the support they offer exceeded our expectations.
Maxime Ferreira
International Director - JB Hired
Manatal has been at the core of our agency's expansion. Using it has greatly improved and simplified our recruitment processes. Incredibly easy and intuitive to use, customizable to a tee, and offers top-tier live support. Our recruiters love it. A must-have for all recruitment agencies. Definitely recommend!
Ngoc-Thinh Tran
HR Manager, Talent Sourcing & Acquisition - Suntory PepsiCo Beverage
I am using Manatal for talent sourcing and it is the best platform ever. I am so impressed, the Manatal team did an excellent work. This is so much awesome, I am recommending the solution to all recruiters I know.

Try Manatal for free during 14-day with no commitment.

No credit card required
No commitment
Try it Now