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The differences between business support specialists and support associates can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a business support specialist and a support associate. Additionally, a business support specialist has an average salary of $53,768, which is higher than the $47,039 average annual salary of a support associate.
The top three skills for a business support specialist include data entry, business support and project management. The most important skills for a support associate are sales floor, computer system, and POS.
| Business Support Specialist | Support Associate | |
| Yearly salary | $53,768 | $47,039 |
| Hourly rate | $25.85 | $22.61 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 161,206 | 100,892 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A business support specialist is responsible for evaluating the current production and manufacturing processes, improving the operational standards, and identifying opportunities to maximize the staff's productivity and efficiency. Business support specialists determine areas of improvement with the business procedures and strategize methods to deliver high-quality outputs for client satisfaction. They also coordinate with the marketing and sales team to monitor business channels and establish solutions to enhance the company's brand image within the target market.
The primary role of sales support associates is to help sales staff and customers during the sales process. A sales support associate also performs other tasks that include maintaining positive customer relations, responding to customers' requests for quotes, information, and specifications, and, initiating contact with prospective customers. They are also responsible for coordinating proposals, sales literature production, and presentations. Requirements for this position include a high school diploma or general education development, administrative and communication skills, and organizational skills.
Business support specialists and support associates have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Business Support Specialist | Support Associate | |
| Average salary | $53,768 | $47,039 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $95,000 | Between $26,000 And $83,000 |
| Highest paying City | New York, NY | Jersey City, NJ |
| Highest paying state | New York | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Genentech | Apollo Global Management |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | - |
There are a few differences between a business support specialist and a support associate in terms of educational background:
| Business Support Specialist | Support Associate | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 48% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between business support specialists' and support associates' demographics:
| Business Support Specialist | Support Associate | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 34.9% Female, 65.1% | Male, 36.7% Female, 63.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.5% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 11.7% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.7% Asian, 10.6% White, 56.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |