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The differences between business unit managers and senior business development managers 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 unit manager, becoming a senior business development manager takes usually requires 8-10 years. Additionally, a senior business development manager has an average salary of $129,638, which is higher than the $122,782 average annual salary of a business unit manager.
The top three skills for a business unit manager include continuous improvement, customer service and product line. The most important skills for a senior business development manager are healthcare, cloud, and business relationships.
| Business Unit Manager | Senior Business Development Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $122,782 | $129,638 |
| Hourly rate | $59.03 | $62.33 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 295,151 | 204,172 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 44 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 10 |
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.
As senior business development manager is mainly responsible for creating and maintaining solid relationships and making business decisions. They do plan ways to grow the business, find areas of client needs, manage business negotiations, and review and approve other business decisions. It is expected in their job to seamlessly complete target deadlines and delegate tasks to subordinates. Moreover, they should be able to have good working relationships with employees and clients, so good communication and interpersonal skills are necessary.
Business unit managers and senior business development managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Business Unit Manager | Senior Business Development Manager | |
| Average salary | $122,782 | $129,638 |
| Salary range | Between $81,000 And $184,000 | Between $94,000 And $178,000 |
| Highest paying City | East Providence, RI | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | Washington |
| Best paying company | Citi | Shearman & Sterling |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a business unit manager and a senior business development manager in terms of educational background:
| Business Unit Manager | Senior Business Development Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Georgia |
Here are the differences between business unit managers' and senior business development managers' demographics:
| Business Unit Manager | Senior Business Development Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 82.8% Female, 17.2% | Male, 74.8% Female, 25.2% |
| 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, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |