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Application development director vs senior project manager

The differences between application development directors and senior project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an application development director has an average salary of $151,898, which is higher than the $110,947 average annual salary of a senior project manager.

The top three skills for an application development director include application development, architecture and java. The most important skills for a senior project manager are project management, program management, and portfolio.

Application development director vs senior project manager overview

Application Development DirectorSenior Project Manager
Yearly salary$151,898$110,947
Hourly rate$73.03$53.34
Growth rate16%16%
Number of jobs100,053183,210
Job satisfaction-5
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 73%Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Average age4747
Years of experience8-

What does an application development director do?

The applications development director focuses on ensuring the smooth and productive development process of strategies and applications used in a company. The development director manages a team of developers who will improve, upgrade, and, if needed, replace existing systems and applications currently used in the company. The development director's role is essential for continuing the company's productivity, which is why this position is only open for people with relevant experience in application development and managerial skills. A development director's added tasks are to work with all related departments in the company, collate their application needs, and integrate those inputs to come up with an application that resolves all company problems.

What does a senior project manager do?

Senior project managers are experienced employees assigned to oversee a specific project in the organization. They manage the project from conception to execution. They are onboard the project from the ideation phase, providing valuable insights to ensure the success of the project. Senior project managers are also in charge of managing the budget, ensuring that the expected timelines are followed, adjusting strategies when needed, and guiding project team members. It is important for senior project managers to be good leaders and communicators. They should be able to balance the interests of all the stakeholders involved in the project. They should have good interpersonal skills and decision-making skills.

Application development director vs senior project manager salary

Application development directors and senior project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Application Development DirectorSenior Project Manager
Average salary$151,898$110,947
Salary rangeBetween $116,000 And $198,000Between $82,000 And $148,000
Highest paying CitySeattle, WASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateWashingtonCalifornia
Best paying companyServiceNowRoku
Best paying industryManufacturingTechnology

Differences between application development director and senior project manager education

There are a few differences between an application development director and a senior project manager in terms of educational background:

Application Development DirectorSenior Project Manager
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 73%Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Most common majorComputer ScienceBusiness
Most common collegeCarnegie Mellon UniversityUniversity of Pennsylvania

Application development director vs senior project manager demographics

Here are the differences between application development directors' and senior project managers' demographics:

Application Development DirectorSenior Project Manager
Average age4747
Gender ratioMale, 84.0% Female, 16.0%Male, 71.4% Female, 28.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.7% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 10.0% Asian, 13.4% White, 64.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 7.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 8.8% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage11%10%

Differences between application development director and senior project manager duties and responsibilities

Application development director example responsibilities.

  • Manage IP portfolio including strategic partnerships, patents, and licensing.
  • Manage the implementation of a SharePoint base project and portfolio management solution and team intranet portal.
  • Manage a portfolio of linear and digital projects for multiple executive steering committees utilizing internal and external resources.
  • Program manage multiple Disney cross functional business unit teams through new enterprise wide ERP application implementations and custom design applications.
  • Manage infrastructure upgrade, replacement and capacity expansion for desktop and middle tier hardware and operating systems in geographically diverse locations.
  • Participate in establishing the company's strategic direction relative to the overall systems and technical architecture.
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Senior project manager example responsibilities.

  • Lead a cloud base property management project.
  • Manage all financial interfaces to existing PeopleSoft applications from design to delivery.
  • Lead implementation of JIRA and numerous project/program delivery improvements in order efficiently deliver concurrent application releases.
  • Manage client relationships and perform necessary functions to build and deliver private/secure CRM applications and email accounts.
  • Streamline and centralize usage of project management tools to manage dependencies and transparent delivery milestones for highly complex SaaS platforms
  • Establish project scope with customer and manage implementation of proprietary Linux /Ubuntu software to ensure on-time delivery with high quality.
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Application development director vs senior project manager skills

Common application development director skills
  • Application Development, 13%
  • Architecture, 7%
  • Java, 7%
  • Software Development, 6%
  • Project Management, 6%
  • Scrum, 4%
Common senior project manager skills
  • Project Management, 17%
  • Program Management, 6%
  • Portfolio, 5%
  • Infrastructure, 4%
  • Project Scope, 4%
  • Business Development, 3%

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