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The differences between business unit leaders and business 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 unit leader and a business manager. Additionally, a business unit leader has an average salary of $111,361, which is higher than the $83,198 average annual salary of a business manager.
The top three skills for a business unit leader include continuous improvement, quality standards and lean manufacturing. The most important skills for a business manager are customer service, powerpoint, and project management.
| Business Unit Leader | Business Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $111,361 | $83,198 |
| Hourly rate | $53.54 | $40.00 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 88,824 | 377,191 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A Business Unit Leader manages growth initiatives such as future acquisition opportunities, strategic partnerships, and organic innovation. These professionals control strategy deployment to ensure operational productivity and economy. They offer this service to sites focusing on Human Resources, Information Technology, Lead Operation, Lean Accounting, Lead Process, Strategic Pricing, and more. Business Unit Leaders also lead by promoting talent management, counseling, team concepts, individual development, training, coaching, mentoring, and retaining. They develop and manage the business unit department budget and strategic plan.
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.
Business unit leaders and business managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Business Unit Leader | Business Manager | |
| Average salary | $111,361 | $83,198 |
| Salary range | Between $64,000 And $191,000 | Between $47,000 And $145,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | New York | Washington |
| Best paying company | Goldman Sachs | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Technology |
There are a few differences between a business unit leader and a business manager in terms of educational background:
| Business Unit Leader | Business Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between business unit leaders' and business managers' demographics:
| Business Unit Leader | Business Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 81.1% Female, 18.9% | Male, 43.2% Female, 56.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.0% Asian, 6.3% White, 67.7% 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% |