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The differences between business development managers and business unit managers 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 manager, becoming a business unit manager takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a business unit manager has an average salary of $122,782, which is higher than the $100,769 average annual salary of a business development manager.
The top three skills for a business development manager include customer service, CRM and healthcare. The most important skills for a business unit manager are continuous improvement, customer service, and product line.
| Business Development Manager | Business Unit Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $100,769 | $122,782 |
| Hourly rate | $48.45 | $59.03 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 215,309 | 295,151 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 39 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 10 | 6 |
A business development manager's duties include identifying business opportunities, developing effective models and strategies to improve business performance, searching for potential clients to generate income and attract partnerships. A business development manager must have extensive knowledge of the market trends and adjust strategies as needed to meet the needs of the client. Excellent communication, decision-making, critical thinking, and leadership skills are just some of the key factors that business development managers should possess to communicate and negotiate with the clients.
A business unit manager handles a unit or segment of the company. This unit may be a specialized team on specific projects or a part of a significant production process. The business unit manager ensures that the unit works efficiently and productively by implementing strategies and techniques that will enhance the productive output. A business unit manager also provides suggestions, offers solutions to problems, handles tasks delegation, planning production processes, and training and monitoring of employees in a unit.
Business development managers and business unit managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Business Development Manager | Business Unit Manager | |
| Average salary | $100,769 | $122,782 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $151,000 | Between $81,000 And $184,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | East Providence, RI |
| Highest paying state | California | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | Shearman & Sterling | Citi |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a business development manager and a business unit manager in terms of educational background:
| Business Development Manager | Business Unit Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between business development managers' and business unit managers' demographics:
| Business Development Manager | Business Unit Manager | |
| Average age | 39 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 68.6% Female, 31.4% | Male, 82.8% Female, 17.2% |
| 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, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |