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The differences between business development executives and specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a business development executive, becoming a specialist takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a business development executive has an average salary of $97,871, which is higher than the $58,013 average annual salary of a specialist.
The top three skills for a business development executive include business development, digital transformation and customer service. The most important skills for a specialist are patients, customer service, and work ethic.
| Business Development Executive | Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $97,871 | $58,013 |
| Hourly rate | $47.05 | $27.89 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 189,950 | 358,433 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Average age | 39 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 10 | 2 |
A business development executive serves as a senior manager who drives company sales. Business development executives convince existing clients to buy more offerings and also source new clients. The focus of their job is on lead generation, prospect management, and customer acquisition. They collaborate with management in terms of sales objectives, planning, and prediction. The skills necessary for this job include customer service and relations, time management, strong written communication, and sales process experience.
Specialists are employees who are responsible for specific tasks or activities in the department they are assigned to. The actions or tasks they work on are related to their educational background or work experiences. They are usually highly skilled in specializations related to the work they are assigned to. Specialists are also highly trained on the competencies that are required of their specialty. As such, they are focused on the skills and competencies that are needed to enhance their experience in their specific field further.
Business development executives and specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Business Development Executive | Specialist | |
| Average salary | $97,871 | $58,013 |
| Salary range | Between $64,000 And $149,000 | Between $32,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | Phoenix, AZ | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Arizona | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Clifford Chance | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | - |
There are a few differences between a business development executive and a specialist in terms of educational background:
| Business Development Executive | Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 49% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between business development executives' and specialists' demographics:
| Business Development Executive | Specialist | |
| Average age | 39 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 63.8% Female, 36.2% | Male, 47.5% Female, 52.5% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 11.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 10.5% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 11% |