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The differences between business executives and personal assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a business executive, becoming a personal assistant takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a business executive has an average salary of $63,101, which is higher than the $40,026 average annual salary of a personal assistant.
The top three skills for a business executive include customer service, customer satisfaction and revenue growth. The most important skills for a personal assistant are run errands, companionship, and scheduling appointments.
| Business Executive | Personal Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $63,101 | $40,026 |
| Hourly rate | $30.34 | $19.24 |
| Growth rate | 6% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 138,097 | 21,638 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 41% |
| Average age | 44 | 49 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 2 |
The duties of a business executive depend upon their position and industry of employment. In general, they are in charge of spearheading and overseeing business operations to ensure that everything runs smoothly and efficiently. They typically have the power to make corporate decisions, set goals and budgets, establish guidelines and timelines, negotiate with potential business partners, and develop business strategies to optimize overall operations. Moreover, a business executive implements and promotes company policies and regulations, creating new ones as needed.
Personal assistants are employees working for individuals who need help in managing their personal affairs. Personal assistants manage the daily activities of their employers. They are in charge of managing their employer's schedules and appointments, often coordinating their meetings and orienting them on their schedule at the start of the day. They also arrange travel needs, from looking for travel tickets to booking accommodations. When they have built enough trust with their employer, they are entrusted to also manage personal financial accounts and are often given access to other confidential information related to the employer.
Business executives and personal assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Business Executive | Personal Assistant | |
| Average salary | $63,101 | $40,026 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $135,000 | Between $26,000 And $60,000 |
| Highest paying City | Albany, NY | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | New York | New York |
| Best paying company | The Walt Disney Company | AbbVie |
| Best paying industry | - | Real Estate |
There are a few differences between a business executive and a personal assistant in terms of educational background:
| Business Executive | Personal Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 41% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between business executives' and personal assistants' demographics:
| Business Executive | Personal Assistant | |
| Average age | 44 | 49 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 59.9% Female, 40.1% | Male, 19.3% Female, 80.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.0% Asian, 6.3% White, 67.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 11.0% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 7.4% White, 57.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 12% |