I have no degrees but I have about 16 years of experience across purchasing, inventory, planning, and procurement. Currently work as a Senior Procurement Specialist with a heavy focus on MRP, inventory, ERP/process improvement, and cross-functional coordination in manufacturing while working closely with production daily.
I originally reported directly to the COO, but after he left the company they changed the structure and I now report to the Purchasing Manager, who honestly doesn’t really understand procurement/MRP/process side of the business but has been with the company 20+ years.
Recently, our Operations Manager and CFO approached me about potentially stepping into a Production Manager role that will be opening soon. Their reasoning wasn’t really based on direct production supervision experience, but more of the skills and mindset I bring.
They’ve also acknowledged some of the friction/hostility coming from the Purchasing Manager because she feels somewhat threatened by my position and visibility within the company.
That said, I know Production Management is a completely different level of responsibility compared to procurement/planning. There’s a huge difference between understanding operations and actually owning labor, output, scheduling execution, downtime, staffing, etc.
For those who transitioned from supply chain/planning/procurement into operations or production leadership:
Was it worth it?
What blindsided you the most?
What skills transferred well?
What skills did you have to develop quickly?
Did it help your long-term career growth?
What salary jump would you consider reasonable for that type of move in Southern California manufacturing?
Would appreciate honest feedback from people who’ve actually made a similar transition.