Associate director, quality assurance vs quality supervisor

The differences between associate directors, quality assurance and quality supervisors 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 quality supervisor. Additionally, an associate director, quality assurance has an average salary of $131,112, which is higher than the $60,486 average annual salary of a quality supervisor.

The top three skills for an associate director, quality assurance include qa management, FDA and GMP. The most important skills for a quality supervisor are continuous improvement, ISO, and corrective action.

Associate director, quality assurance vs quality supervisor overview

	Associate Director, Quality Assurance	Quality Supervisor
Yearly salary	$131,112	$60,486
Hourly rate	$63.03	$29.08
Growth rate	3%	3%
Number of jobs	67,521	61,400
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
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 quality supervisor do?

A quality supervisor is an individual who manages and implements the quality assurance and control systems of a company to ensure the proper execution of products and customer satisfaction. Quality supervisors oversee a team of quality control analysts and train them on the latest product standards. They must make sure that customers are pleased with the finished product by communicating with them and setting realistic expectations. Quality supervisors must also provide reports on quality metrics to the other members of the management team.

Associate director, quality assurance vs quality supervisor salary

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

	Associate Director, Quality Assurance	Quality Supervisor
Average salary	$131,112	$60,486
Salary range	Between $93,000 And $183,000	Between $43,000 And $84,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Richmond, CA
Highest paying state	Alaska	Hawaii
Best paying company	Corcept Therapeutics	Intuitive Surgical
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Automotive

Differences between associate director, quality assurance and quality supervisor education

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

	Associate Director, Quality Assurance	Quality Supervisor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Biology	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	Stanford University

Associate director, quality assurance vs quality supervisor demographics

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

	Associate Director, Quality Assurance	Quality Supervisor
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 59.8% Female, 40.2%	Male, 66.6% Female, 33.4%
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, 3.9% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 13.3% Asian, 9.2% White, 69.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between associate director, quality assurance and quality supervisor 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.

Quality supervisor example responsibilities.

Lead the TS16949 implementation team.
Research and involve respective departments to achieve immediate corrective/preventative action response to pertinent customer and internal CAPA's, as required.
Maintain effective work instructions and operating procedures for inspection, operations and supplier quality assurance per ISO requirements.
Develop KPIs for suppliers and document progress.
Participate in hosting customer, governmental, third party certifying body plant visits and perform all GMP internal audits.
Prepare documentation and training for ISO re-certification audits.

Associate director, quality assurance vs quality supervisor skills

Common associate director, quality assurance skills

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

Common quality supervisor skills

Continuous Improvement, 7%
ISO, 6%
Corrective Action, 5%
Quality Standards, 5%
Food Safety, 4%
Product Quality, 3%

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Associate Director, Quality Assurance
Associate Director, Quality Assurance vs Quality Supervisor

Updated January 8, 2025

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