Advisory board member vs executive director

The differences between advisory board members and executive directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes More than 10 years to become an advisory board member, becoming an executive director takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, an executive director has an average salary of $127,956, which is higher than the $63,675 average annual salary of an advisory board member.

The top three skills for an advisory board member include community outreach, non-profit organization and strategic direction. The most important skills for an executive director are oversight, patients, and customer service.

Advisory board member vs executive director overview

	Advisory Board Member	Executive Director
Yearly salary	$63,675	$127,956
Hourly rate	$30.61	$61.52
Growth rate	6%	-8%
Number of jobs	9,710	97,471
Job satisfaction	-	4.5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age	52	49
Years of experience	-	4

What does an advisory board member do?

An advisory board member provides business operations recommendations to the company's executives. Company executives, such as the CEO or company owner, need input from trustworthy people to continually improve their company. Companies must be adaptable to have a chance in an ever-competitive market. Advisory board members must maintain a level of adaptability that will make the company resilient and robust.

What does an executive director do?

Executive directors are top management employees who usually function as a chief executive officer. This role is usually seen in non-profit organizations. Executive directors provide strategic direction to the organization, and they ensure that the organization's goals are actualized. They provide guidance to the employees and ensure that the employees have the organization's advocacies at the center of every project or program. They oversee the policies of the organization and create strategies that will bring the organization's programs forward. Executive directors are also responsible for making crucial decisions for the betterment of the organization.

Advisory board member vs executive director salary

Advisory board members and executive directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Advisory Board Member	Executive Director
Average salary	$63,675	$127,956
Salary range	Between $18,000 And $218,000	Between $76,000 And $213,000
Highest paying City	-	New York, NY
Highest paying state	-	New York
Best paying company	-	Genentech
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between advisory board member and executive director education

There are a few differences between an advisory board member and an executive director in terms of educational background:

	Advisory Board Member	Executive Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Advisory board member vs executive director demographics

Here are the differences between advisory board members' and executive directors' demographics:

	Advisory Board Member	Executive Director
Average age	52	49
Gender ratio	Male, 47.9% Female, 52.1%	Male, 47.0% Female, 53.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.5% Asian, 7.4% White, 77.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 5.0% White, 71.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	12%	10%

Differences between advisory board member and executive director duties and responsibilities

Advisory board member example responsibilities.

Work with a team of 13 other members to manage, fill, and distribute THON merchandise orders.
Participate in THON, a yearlong effort to raise money and awareness in the fight against pediatric cancer.
Develop organizational policies and procedures for staffing, fund raising, governance and administration of the new organization.
Engage perspective student questions on the admitted students' Facebook page.
Create and organize a school wide math night to support parent involvement through mathematics
Serve as regular panelist discussing current events, school life and other teen relate issues.

Executive director example responsibilities.

Manage 10 department heads who supervise a staff of 350 FTE's.
Develop and manage sales teams to assure the highest ROI on the client's investment.
Create and manage a call center for lead programs to support the prospecting activity needs of the FSR.
Freelance blogging to increase website views and ultimately to turn organic content into leads and ROI for small businesses.
Market and manage group and individual insurance programs including health, life, disability, long term care and annuities.
Major accomplishment are to achieve initial NAEYC accreditation.

Advisory board member vs executive director skills

Common advisory board member skills

Community Outreach, 13%
Non-Profit Organization, 9%
Strategic Direction, 8%
Policy Changes, 7%
Public Health, 7%
Alumni, 7%

Common executive director skills

Oversight, 10%
Patients, 9%
Customer Service, 5%
Financial Management, 5%
Business Development, 4%
Home Health, 4%

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Advisory Board Member vs Executive Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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