Dear Dakota | How To Hire A Purchasing Coordinator Who Doesn’t Want To Be An Interior Designer

Jul 5

Dear Dakota,
How do you locate talent for an operations/purchasing type role, someone who doesn’t want to be a designer? I need to find someone who would like to work at a design firm managing budgets, invoices, procurement, and design operations? Everyone who applies for my open position wants to be a designer. HELP!!

Oh, the joys of hiring! Back in the day when I had my first company, a wedding and event design and planning company, I experienced the EXACT same situation when I would post job openings for my company. It drove me mad because people would apply and write things like, “I’ve always wanted to be a wedding planner and this would be a great learning experience”. I never understood this because i) I wasn’t trying to train my future competition on my dime and ii) nothing in my job description said it was a mentorship program.

So what did I do? I changed my job postings to remove my company name and that it was a wedding and event design and planning company and I clearly outlined the specific skill set required for the role, which didn’t include any design skills.

How can you apply this to your interior design business? Easy!

Keep your company name confidential in your job description/job posting. If you do disclose your company name, be clear the position is NOT a designer position. Specifically state: if you want to be a designer, this is not the role for you.
Describe a purchasing coordinator, NOT a designer. Highlight the financial management aspects like budget tracking and invoice and PO management. Emphasize the non-design responsibilities like:

Ideal candidates will have X years of experience overseeing the entire order management process: producing purchase orders, tracking orders and deliveries, communicating with vendors, managing payments and invoices, communicating with shippers and delivery agents, interfacing with receiver and warehouse personnel, and coordinating delivery schedules with clients.
Ideal candidates will have excellent communication skills, follow through, and attention to detail.
Ideal candidates will have proficiency with Studio Manager/Houzz Pro/Excel/Google Sheets/AirTable (whatever you use for tracking orders).

Use a specific title like “purchasing coordinator,” “procurement specialist,” or “operations coordinator.” Do not call this role "interior design assistant" or "design assistant.”
Specify the career path in your job description. State that this role is geared toward career growth in operations, procurement, or business management NOT interior design. Restate: If you want to be an interior designer, this role is NOT for you.
Be careful where you post the job.

Contact business schools or supply chain management programs to connect with students or graduates interested in operations or logistics roles.
Post on platforms that cater to administrative and operational roles like Indeed or LinkedIn. (My personal favorite is Indeed - that is where I found my entire team!)
Don’t post procurement job openings at design schools, as those students are likely to pursue a career in interior design.

Adjust your screening process. During the interview process, find out their long-term goals and favorite projects to work on. Ask them targeted questions to uncover their interest in financial management, logistics, and operational efficiency. You could ask questions like:

Can you describe a time when you streamlined a purchasing process?
How do you manage vendor relationships to ensure timely and cost-effective procurement?
Ask about their experience with conflict resolution in vendor relationships or handling unexpected delays in procurement to understand their problem-solving skills and ability to manage crises.
Or, you may present real-world scenarios related to budgeting, vendor management, or handling large orders for multiple projects to gauge their enthusiasm and skill set for these tasks.

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