Associate director, quality assurance vs director of quality

The differences between associate directors, quality assurance and directors of quality can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an associate director, quality assurance and a director of quality. Additionally, a director of quality has an average salary of $134,435, which is higher than the $131,112 average annual salary of an associate director, quality assurance.

The top three skills for an associate director, quality assurance include qa management, FDA and GMP. The most important skills for a director of quality are healthcare, quality improvement, and patients.

Associate director, quality assurance vs director of quality overview

	Associate Director, Quality Assurance	Director Of Quality
Yearly salary	$131,112	$134,435
Hourly rate	$63.03	$64.63
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	67,521	65,443
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	6	6

What does an associate director, quality assurance do?

Quality analysts act as problem solvers and testers of products or services in the production phase. They are responsible for the development and support of testing, process planning, design, and execution. These professionals need to have skills such as good communication skills, logic and reasoning, information technology skills, and a creative mindset. They should also be equipped with knowledge about the testing techniques. A computer science bachelor's degree or any of its associated fields is necessary to become a quality analyst.

What does a director of quality do?

In the manufacturing industry, a director of quality is primarily in charge of spearheading and overseeing the daily operations in a quality assurance department. They work to ensure that products adhere to the company's quality standards and industry regulations by conducting research and assessments, developing quality test systems, and reviewing reports. As a director of quality, they have the authority to make significant decisions, establish protocols and guidelines, set objectives and timelines, and implement rules and policies, creating new ones as necessary.

Associate director, quality assurance vs director of quality salary

Associate directors, quality assurance and directors of quality have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Associate Director, Quality Assurance	Director Of Quality
Average salary	$131,112	$134,435
Salary range	Between $93,000 And $183,000	Between $98,000 And $183,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Portland, OR
Highest paying state	Alaska	Alaska
Best paying company	Corcept Therapeutics	Google
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Finance

Differences between associate director, quality assurance and director of quality education

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

	Associate Director, Quality Assurance	Director Of Quality
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common major	Biology	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Associate director, quality assurance vs director of quality demographics

Here are the differences between associate directors, quality assurance' and directors of quality' demographics:

	Associate Director, Quality Assurance	Director Of Quality
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 59.8% Female, 40.2%	Male, 65.2% Female, 34.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 9.1% White, 69.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 69.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between associate director, quality assurance and director of quality duties and responsibilities

Associate director, quality assurance example responsibilities.

Create and manage worldwide GCP, GMP, and GLP audit program.
Manage and report quality data metrics including audits, investigations, CAPA, for management review meetings and steering committee meetings.
Manage large scale automation platform to perform regression and functional verification.
Manage initial USDA regulatory visits, working collaboratively with USDA inspectors leading audit preparation and follow-up activities and reports.
Authore SVMP and SMF for MHRA (EU) certification.
Train company on QSR, cGMP, and ISO regulations.

Director of quality example responsibilities.

Develop and manage internal QMS audit and corrective and preventive action processes.
Manage the transition to a campus AS9100 certification for all major Aero sites.
Manage functional and system testing activities, API customization and RDMBS tools testing teams.
Lead teams from design concept and team feasibility commitment through product launch and PPAP.
Lead targeted staff training and development of CMS, AHCA, and DOEA guidelines and regulations.
Lead a team of engineers and operations personnel to introduce 6 new alpha products into mfg.

Associate director, quality assurance vs director of quality skills

Common associate director, quality assurance skills

Qa Management, 8%
FDA, 6%
GMP, 6%
GCP, 5%
ICH, 4%
CAPA, 4%

Common director of quality skills

Healthcare, 8%
Quality Improvement, 5%
Patients, 4%
Oversight, 4%
Patient Safety, 4%
Continuous Improvement, 4%

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Associate Director, Quality Assurance
Associate Director, Quality Assurance vs Director Of Quality

Updated January 8, 2025

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