Entry Requirements
Considerable experience is normally required to become a fully-fledged production manager. Most people in such a
position have usually worked in subsidiary roles, such as inventory control, configuration analysis, material planning or as
a supervisor.
Nowadays, most entrants to the profession have a degree or HND, but there are also opportunities for non-graduates
who are prepared to study for professional qualifications, such as those offered by The Institute of Operations
Management (IOM) or the Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM).
A degree/HND in one of the following disciplines is desirable, depending on the type of industry you wish to work in:
mechanical engineering;
food science/technology;
process engineering;
business/management;
electrical and electronic engineering;
materials science/technology;
transport/distribution/logistics;
chemistry;
physics;
biochemistry.
However, a qualification in some other discipline (eg, civil engineering, the humanities) would not preclude a person from
working in production management given sufficient motivation and a willingness to study for the relevant professional
qualifications. A few universities offer degree courses in production management: Coventry, Huddersfield, Leeds and
University of the Arts. Postgraduate courses in production management are offered at Teesside, Nottingham and the
University of Manchester.