# Purchasing Managers

US SOC code 11-3061. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/11-3061

Also called: Procurement manager, Director of procurement, VP of procurement, Chief procurement officer, Strategic sourcing manager.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **84,320** US purchasing managers, with median pay of **$148,080** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **91,060**, in May 2003. The earliest figure here is [a Census count](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/occ_ind.shtml) of **68,000** from 1940, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for purchasing managers: Ariba and e-procurement marketplaces, 1996 to 2015.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=11-3061&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **47.1%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Purchasing Managers employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1866
- Latest US employment: 84,320 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [5]
- Latest US median pay: $148,080 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [10]
- Outlook: +4% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [25]

### In other countries

The latest figure each country's statistics agency publishes for this job. Each uses its own occupation definition, survey basis and currency, so the numbers are not directly comparable with each other or with the US figures.

- **Canada** (NOC 10012)
  - Employment, 2020: 26,670. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [6]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021: number of persons with employment income in NOC 10012 Purchasing managers, Canada, reference year 2020. A recipients basis (anyone with employment income during the year), slightly broader than a point-in-time employed count. Statistics Canada Open Licence.
  - Median pay, 2020: C$99,000. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [12]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021 (Table 98-10-0586): median employment income for NOC 10012 Purchasing managers, Canada, reference year 2020, full-year full-time workers (the basis comparable to the US OEWS full-time median). Statistics Canada Open Licence.

### All 28 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1940 | 68,000 | n/a | Decennial Census 1940 [1] |
| 1950 | 92,000 | n/a | Decennial Census 1950 [2] |
| 1960 | n/a | $8,500 (estimate) | Est., University of Missouri Libraries [7] |
| 1980 | 215,000 | $26,000 (estimate) | Decennial Census 1980 (employment) [3]; Est., Reference for Business Encyclopedia (pay) [8] |
| 2000 | 126,030 | $53,030 | BLS OEWS 2000 [4] |
| 2003 | 91,060 | $64,930 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [5] |
| 2004 | 73,480 | $72,450 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [5] |
| 2005 | 69,300 | $76,270 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [5] |
| 2006 | 66,490 | $81,570 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [5] |
| 2007 | 65,600 | $85,440 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [5] |
| 2008 | 67,150 | $89,160 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [5] |
| 2009 | 65,080 | $91,440 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [5] |
| 2010 | 65,220 | $95,070 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [5] |
| 2011 | 66,990 | $97,130 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [5] |
| 2012 | 69,400 | $100,170 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [5] |
| 2013 | 69,620 | $103,780 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [5] |
| 2014 | 70,840 | $106,090 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [5] |
| 2015 | 72,600 | $108,120 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [5] |
| 2016 | 71,750 | $111,590 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [5] |
| 2017 | 70,430 | $115,760 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [5] |
| 2018 | 69,490 | $118,940 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [5] |
| 2019 | 72,100 | $121,110 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [5] |
| 2020 | 70,960 | $125,940 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [5] |
| 2021 | 69,310 | $127,150 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [5] |
| 2022 | 75,070 | $131,350 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [5] |
| 2023 | 77,530 | $136,380 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [5] |
| 2024 | 81,240 | $139,510 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [5] |
| 2025 | 84,320 | $148,080 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [5] |

## Sources (88)

### Employment series

1. [IPUMS USA -- Occupation and Industry Codes and Documentation (1940 Census: "purchasing agents and buyers," OCC code 390)](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/occ_ind.shtml), IPUMS / University of Minnesota
2. [IPUMS USA -- Alphabetic Index of Occupations and Industries 1950 ("purchasing agents and buyers" classification)](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/resources/volii/Occupations1950.pdf), IPUMS / University of Minnesota
3. [IPUMS USA -- 1980 Occupation Codes (purchasing agents and buyers category; note: 1980 classification changed markedly from 1970)](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/98occup.shtml), IPUMS / University of Minnesota
4. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
5. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
6. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Wage series

7. [University of Missouri Libraries -- Prices and Wages by Decade 1950-1959 (BLS occupational wage surveys, professional managerial occupations reference)](https://libraryguides.missouri.edu/pricesandwages/1950-1959), University of Missouri Libraries / BLS historical sources
8. [NAPM / ISM history and member surveys context -- Reference for Business: Purchasing and Procurement (professional salary reference, 1980 era)](https://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Pr-Sa/Purchasing-and-Procurement.html), Reference for Business Encyclopedia
9. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
10. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
11. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
12. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Tool eras

13. [Internet Archive -- Kirkman, M.M.: The Handling of Railway Supplies, Their Purchase and Disposition (1887)](https://archive.org/details/handlingrailway00kirkgoog), Internet Archive / Chicago and Northwestern Railroad
14. [Pennsylvania Railroad Chronology 1866 -- Supplying Department creation (February 7, 1866)](http://www.prrths.com/newprr_files/Hagley/PRR1866.pdf), Pennsylvania Railroad Historical and Technical Society
15. [Wikipedia -- Institute for Supply Management (founding as NAPA 1915, history and milestones)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institute_for_Supply_Management), Wikipedia
16. [Reference for Business -- Purchasing and Procurement: History section (Harvard 1917 course; WWII professionalization)](https://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Pr-Sa/Purchasing-and-Procurement.html), Reference for Business Encyclopedia
17. [JAGGAER -- Procurement Through the Ages (1960s MRP and computerization of procurement)](https://www.jaggaer.com/blog/procurement-through-the-ages), JAGGAER
18. [Encyclopedia.com -- Purchasing and Procurement: History (1960s-1970s evolution)](https://www.encyclopedia.com/management/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/purchasing-and-procurement), Encyclopedia.com
19. [SAP Community -- A Brief History of SAP (SAP R/3 1992 launch, procurement module history)](https://community.sap.com/t5/enterprise-resource-planning-blog-posts-by-members/a-brief-history-of-sap-an-introduction-for-the-uninitiated/ba-p/13885008), SAP Community
20. [ExpenseAnywhere -- E-Procurement Software Evolution: From Paperwork to AI Mastery (1990s-2000s history)](https://expenseanywhere.com/evolution-e-procurement-software-ai/), ExpenseAnywhere
21. [Wikipedia -- SAP Ariba (founding 1996, IPO 1999, SAP acquisition 2012)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAP_Ariba), Wikipedia
22. [IBM Think -- What is SAP Ariba? (history and procurement transformation context)](https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/sap-ariba), IBM
23. [Art of Procurement -- State of AI in Procurement 2026 (94% weekly GenAI use; KPMG 50-80% automation potential)](https://artofprocurement.com/blog/state-of-ai-in-procurement), Art of Procurement
24. [McKinsey -- Transforming Procurement Functions for an AI-Driven World (25-40% efficiency improvement from agentic AI)](https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/operations/our-insights/transforming-procurement-functions-for-an-ai-driven-world), McKinsey and Company

### Forecasts and exposure studies

25. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 11-3061 Purchasing managers (2025: 88.3 thousand; 2035: 91.8 thousand; +4.0%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=11-3061&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
26. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 11-3061.00, human-rated β 0.471)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

27. [Pennsylvania Railroad Chronology 1866 -- Supplying Department creation](http://www.prrths.com/newprr_files/Hagley/PRR1866.pdf), Pennsylvania Railroad Historical and Technical Society
28. [Internet Archive -- Kirkman, M.M.: The Handling of Railway Supplies (1887, first book on purchasing practice)](https://archive.org/details/handlingrailway00kirkgoog), Internet Archive
29. [Wikipedia -- Institute for Supply Management (NAPA founding 1915; Elwood B. Hendricks; early chapter growth)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institute_for_Supply_Management), Wikipedia
30. [Reference for Business -- Purchasing and Procurement: History (Harvard 1917 course; WWI professionalization)](https://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management/Pr-Sa/Purchasing-and-Procurement.html), Reference for Business Encyclopedia
31. [Encyclopedia.com -- Purchasing and Procurement: 1970s oil crisis and procurement strategy evolution](https://www.encyclopedia.com/management/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/purchasing-and-procurement), Encyclopedia.com
32. [Wikipedia -- SAP Ariba (Ariba IPO 1999; market cap $40B; SAP acquisition 2012 for $4.4B)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAP_Ariba), Wikipedia
33. [Wikipedia -- 2021-2023 global supply chain crisis (semiconductor shortages, automotive halts, shipping container imbalances, COVID-19 disruption context)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2021%E2%80%932023_global_supply_chain_crisis), Wikipedia

### Predecessors & successors

34. [Pennsylvania Railroad Chronology 1866 -- Supplying Department creation (the originating role)](http://www.prrths.com/newprr_files/Hagley/PRR1866.pdf), Pennsylvania Railroad Historical and Technical Society
35. [Wikipedia -- Institute for Supply Management (NAPA founding 1915; early professional career ladder)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Institute_for_Supply_Management), Wikipedia

### Present-day analysis

- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-23
- [O\*NET 30.3 — Purchasing Managers (11-3061.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/11-3061.00), accessed 2026-05-23
- [McKinsey Global Institute — The Economic Potential of Generative AI (2023)](https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/tech-and-ai/our-insights/the-economic-potential-of-generative-ai-the-next-productivity-frontier), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Gartner — Top Trends in Procurement and Sourcing 2025](https://www.gartner.com/en/procurement-operations/trends/top-trends-procurement-sourcing), accessed 2026-05-23
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Purchasing Managers, Buyers, and Purchasing Agents (2024)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/purchasing-managers-buyers-and-purchasing-agents.htm), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Coupa — Coupa Navi AI Platform: Autonomous Procurement Automation (2025)](https://www.coupa.com/products/ai), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Zip — AI-Powered Intake-to-Procure Platform: Autonomous Approval Routing (2025)](https://zip.com/products/intake-to-procure), accessed 2026-06-21
- [Suplari — Suplari AI Spend Analytics: Category Management and Spend Visibility (2025)](https://suplari.com/), accessed 2026-06-21
- [Sievo — Sievo AI Spend Analytics: Category Benchmarking and Savings Tracking (2025)](https://sievo.com/), accessed 2026-06-21
- [ScoutBee — AI Supplier Discovery: Intelligent Supplier Identification and Shortlisting (2025)](https://www.scoutbee.com/), accessed 2026-06-21

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.