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Area manager vs project manager

The differences between area managers and project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a project manager has an average salary of $91,578, which is higher than the $73,472 average annual salary of an area manager.

The top three skills for an area manager include customer service, safety standards and logistics. The most important skills for a project manager are project management, project scope, and customer service.

Area manager vs project manager overview

Area ManagerProject Manager
Yearly salary$73,472$91,578
Hourly rate$35.32$44.03
Growth rate6%8%
Number of jobs341,983167,116
Job satisfaction-4.17
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 63%Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Average age4447
Years of experience6-

What does an area manager do?

An Area Manager's responsibility is to oversee the business operations of all company branches within a particular area. Among the tasks involve creating strategies to achieve the sales target, monitoring and evaluating the performance and progress of stores including their workforce, adhering to the budget and regulations of the company, and focus on attaining the image and financial goals. Moreover, an Area Manager must communicate and coordinate with fellow managers and hire employees that would be a vital member of the company.

What does a project manager do?

Project managers oversee a specific project related to the organization's business. They manage the whole project from inception to evaluation. They initiate planning with involved departments, follow-through on the plans, ensure smooth execution of the plans, and evaluate the project for further improvements should these be needed. In line with this, project managers also ensure that the project is cost-efficient and well within the budget. They also manage the different work teams involved in the project and ensure that things are running smoothly on this aspect as well.

Area manager vs project manager salary

Area managers and project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Area ManagerProject Manager
Average salary$73,472$91,578
Salary rangeBetween $50,000 And $107,000Between $64,000 And $129,000
Highest paying CityNew York, NYSan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateNew YorkCalifornia
Best paying companyClifford ChanceThe Citadel
Best paying industryTechnologyTechnology

Differences between area manager and project manager education

There are a few differences between an area manager and a project manager in terms of educational background:

Area ManagerProject Manager
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 63%Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Area manager vs project manager demographics

Here are the differences between area managers' and project managers' demographics:

Area ManagerProject Manager
Average age4447
Gender ratioMale, 69.1% Female, 30.9%Male, 68.9% Female, 31.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 65.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage10%10%

Differences between area manager and project manager duties and responsibilities

Area manager example responsibilities.

  • Manage the recruitment, hiring, training and development of all depot distribution staff.
  • Used creativity and persistence to create new sales leads and run all provide leads.
  • Mark by achieving district s top shrink and performance (e.g., CPR) rates.
  • Manage Sortation area operations and escalate customer order fulfillment issues.
  • Manage operations in accordance with all regulatory (HSE) requirements and company procedures/guiding principles.
  • Implement and manage contracts for Medicaid while maintaining excellent relationships with key local agency executives.
  • Show more

Project manager example responsibilities.

  • Schedule and manage the GCP audit process.
  • Define, develop and manage metrics and KPIs systems for new product business group.
  • Manage the application process for the FDA medical device, minority and small business certifications.
  • Manage multiple projects and resources simultaneously while mentoring, coaching and implementing best practices, SOX and HIPAA compliance standards.
  • Lead teams using the Informatica ETL tool for the design and development of multiple financial and risk enterprise data warehouses.
  • Administer and manage Salesforce requirements.
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Area manager vs project manager skills

Common area manager skills
  • Customer Service, 18%
  • Safety Standards, 10%
  • Logistics, 8%
  • Excellent Interpersonal, 5%
  • Business Plan, 4%
  • Continuous Improvement, 4%
Common project manager skills
  • Project Management, 23%
  • Project Scope, 6%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • Infrastructure, 5%
  • Status Reports, 4%
  • Risk Management, 3%

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