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The differences between business managers and business unit managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a business manager and a business unit manager. Additionally, a business unit manager has an average salary of $122,782, which is higher than the $83,198 average annual salary of a business manager.
The top three skills for a business manager include customer service, powerpoint and project management. The most important skills for a business unit manager are continuous improvement, customer service, and product line.
| Business Manager | Business Unit Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $83,198 | $122,782 |
| Hourly rate | $40.00 | $59.03 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 377,191 | 295,151 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A business manager is responsible for directing the overall operations of the company, ensuring that all employees do their tasks efficiently and accurately. Business managers' duties include developing strategic solutions, evaluating employees' performance, identifying business opportunities to grow, monitoring the company's expenses to meet its budget goals, implementing techniques to boost the company's revenue and profitability, and adhering to the company's legal policies and procedures. A business manager must have excellent leadership and interpersonal skills to supervise daily operations.
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 managers and business unit managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Business Manager | Business Unit Manager | |
| Average salary | $83,198 | $122,782 |
| Salary range | Between $47,000 And $145,000 | Between $81,000 And $184,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | East Providence, RI |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | The Citadel | Citi |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a business manager and a business unit manager in terms of educational background:
| Business Manager | Business Unit Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 70% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between business managers' and business unit managers' demographics:
| Business Manager | Business Unit Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 43.2% Female, 56.8% | Male, 82.8% Female, 17.2% |
| Race ratio | 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% | 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% |