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The differences between alliance managers and category managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 8-10 years to become both an alliance manager and a category manager. Additionally, an alliance manager has an average salary of $141,424, which is higher than the $102,035 average annual salary of a category manager.
The top three skills for an alliance manager include cloud, business development and business plan. The most important skills for a category manager are strategic sourcing, category strategy, and supplier performance.
| Alliance Manager | Category Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $141,424 | $102,035 |
| Hourly rate | $67.99 | $49.06 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 107,812 | 108,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 10 | 10 |
An alliance manager helps the company grow and expand by establishing connections with other stakeholders and partners. The alliance manager aims to solidify relationships to ensure the continued long-term benefits of the company. The alliance manager needs to be highly versatile, engage in conversation with different people, and have strong communication and interpersonal skills. An alliance manager is essential for a large company that needs high-level cooperation between managers, stakeholders, and partners.
Category managers are usually employed in the retail industry. They are primarily responsible for the sales enhancement of a specific group of products. The managers are involved in pricing, marketing, inventory, and vendor management. Their daily tasks include meeting with suppliers to talk about the plans, conducting orientation to the market research company, and updating category reports. Qualified applicants must have a degree in business administration or a related field as well as relevant job experience in a related job.
Alliance managers and category managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Alliance Manager | Category Manager | |
| Average salary | $141,424 | $102,035 |
| Salary range | Between $100,000 And $198,000 | Between $74,000 And $138,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Nevada |
| Best paying company | Okta | McKinsey & Company Inc |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between an alliance manager and a category manager in terms of educational background:
| Alliance Manager | Category Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 74% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | University of Georgia |
Here are the differences between alliance managers' and category managers' demographics:
| Alliance Manager | Category Manager | |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 65.5% Female, 34.5% | Male, 55.7% Female, 44.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |