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The differences between associate 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 $83,246 average annual salary of an associate manager.
The top three skills for an associate manager include PET, POS and sales floor. The most important skills for a project manager are project management, project scope, and customer service.
| Associate Manager | Project Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $83,246 | $91,578 |
| Hourly rate | $40.02 | $44.03 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 420,292 | 167,116 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.17 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | - |
Associate managers are responsible for overseeing the support and clerical staff of the company. They recruit and train employees who perform different tasks that include greeting customers, answering phones, and faxing documents. They also perform other duties, including keeping employees' motivation, ensuring that everyone understands the company's guidelines and policies, and supervising other staff members. To be qualified as an associate manager, one should have a high school diploma, leadership skills, and a strong work ethic. One should also have the necessary computer skills, bookkeeping skills, and customer service skills.
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.
Associate managers and project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Associate Manager | Project Manager | |
| Average salary | $83,246 | $91,578 |
| Salary range | Between $55,000 And $124,000 | Between $64,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | California |
| Best paying company | PayPal | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between an associate manager and a project manager in terms of educational background:
| Associate Manager | Project Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between associate managers' and project managers' demographics:
| Associate Manager | Project Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 45.5% Female, 54.5% | Male, 68.9% Female, 31.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.5% 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 Percentage | 10% | 10% |