Associate director vs department director

The differences between associate directors and department directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an associate director has an average salary of $114,223, which is higher than the $97,804 average annual salary of a department director.

The top three skills for an associate director include patients, healthcare and project management. The most important skills for a department director are patient care, patients, and healthcare.

Associate director vs department director overview

	Associate Director	Department Director
Yearly salary	$114,223	$97,804
Hourly rate	$54.91	$47.02
Growth rate	8%	28%
Number of jobs	72,370	73,424
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	-	6

What does an associate director do?

An associate director oversees the daily activities and business operations within a particular area. They are primarily responsible for devising strategies that aim for growth in profit and customer satisfaction, implementing policies and standards, evaluate the workforce, providing support to various departments, and setting goals in terms of budget and sales. Furthermore, they must regularly report progress to the director and coordinate with managers and supervisors in the joint effort to reach the vision and mission of the company.

What does a department director do?

A Department Director spearheads and oversees the operations of a department, ensuring efficiency and smooth workflow. Although their responsibilities vary upon the functions of a department, they typically have the power to decide on projects and programs. Their responsibilities include setting goals, establishing budgets and guidelines, representing the department at meetings and media coverages, liaising with external business partners, managing staff, and monitoring the progress of operations. Moreover, a Department Director leads and encourages staff to reach goals while implementing the company's policies and regulations.

Associate director vs department director salary

Associate directors and department directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Associate Director	Department Director
Average salary	$114,223	$97,804
Salary range	Between $79,000 And $164,000	Between $64,000 And $148,000
Highest paying City	South San Francisco, CA	New York, NY
Highest paying state	New Jersey	New Jersey
Best paying company	Legalmatch.com	Anna Jaques Hospital
Best paying industry	Pharmaceutical	Finance

Differences between associate director and department director education

There are a few differences between an associate director and a department director in terms of educational background:

	Associate Director	Department Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 66%	Bachelor's Degree, 57%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Associate director vs department director demographics

Here are the differences between associate directors' and department directors' demographics:

	Associate Director	Department Director
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 52.0% Female, 48.0%	Male, 52.8% Female, 47.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.6% Asian, 8.9% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 7.9% White, 62.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	10%	12%

Differences between associate director and department director duties and responsibilities

Associate director example responsibilities.

Lead implementation of OPPE and FPPE for TJC.
Manage accounting, weekly reports, local contacts, and maintenance of sets, props, and costumes.
Manage all aspects of music ministry - including arranging all music for schedule services special programs and events.
Manage departmental training schedules, work schedules and CPSI electronic medical record (EMR), certifications and competencies.
Manage web development and rebranding initiative.
Create a coordinate university social media committee quadrupling engagement during campaigns and achieving a national twitter trend during commencement.

Department director example responsibilities.

Manage and direct bureau operations, and provide oversight of criminal investigations of statewide importance.
Establish and develop relationships with ERP and consulting vendors with the goal of maximizing comparative advantage and cost efficient solution development.
Ensure compliance with all CMS regulations.
Provide public education in the areas of fire department capabilities and history as well as CPR classes.
Follow up and coordination of rehabilitation services.
Cross-Train pre-operative and PACU staff to optimize efficiency.

Associate director vs department director skills

Common associate director skills

Patients, 11%
Healthcare, 8%
Project Management, 6%
Oversight, 6%
Portfolio, 6%
Excellent Interpersonal, 5%

Common department director skills

Patient Care, 15%
Patients, 14%
Healthcare, 13%
Oversight, 8%
Human Resources, 5%
Payroll, 4%

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Associate Director
Associate Director vs Department Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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