Center director vs assistant executive director

The differences between center directors and assistant executive directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a center director and an assistant executive director. Additionally, a center director has an average salary of $106,505, which is higher than the $67,525 average annual salary of an assistant executive director.

The top three skills for a center director include customer service, oversight and proficiency testing. The most important skills for an assistant executive director are customer service, healthcare, and oversight.

Center director vs assistant executive director overview

	Center Director	Assistant Executive Director
Yearly salary	$106,505	$67,525
Hourly rate	$51.20	$32.46
Growth rate	8%	-8%
Number of jobs	62,348	92,321
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Average age	47	49
Years of experience	4	4

What does a center director do?

A center director is responsible for ensuring and maintaining the efficiency of child care facilities. Their role is to conduct various assessments, ensure that all aspects adhere to federal requirements, develop programs and supplemental activities in collaboration with child care experts, recruit and hire an efficient workforce, and train staff for professional development. Furthermore, a center director is also responsible for managing budgets, handling issues, meeting parents or guardians to discuss the scope of programs or any other concerns, and implementing policies and regulations.

What does an assistant executive director do?

An Assistant Executive Director helps the director in planning and monitoring the progress of the department. They ensure compliance with regulations and internal policies, participate in budgeting and monitoring expenses, and create reports and submit them to the director.

Center director vs assistant executive director salary

Center directors and assistant executive directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Center Director	Assistant Executive Director
Average salary	$106,505	$67,525
Salary range	Between $65,000 And $172,000	Between $36,000 And $124,000
Highest paying City	Newark, DE	-
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	-
Best paying company	Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between center director and assistant executive director education

There are a few differences between a center director and an assistant executive director in terms of educational background:

	Center Director	Assistant Executive Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 61%	Bachelor's Degree, 60%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Center director vs assistant executive director demographics

Here are the differences between center directors' and assistant executive directors' demographics:

	Center Director	Assistant Executive Director
Average age	47	49
Gender ratio	Male, 29.0% Female, 71.0%	Male, 40.2% Female, 59.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.3% Asian, 4.4% White, 64.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 5.0% White, 71.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	16%	10%

Differences between center director and assistant executive director duties and responsibilities

Center director example responsibilities.

Manage programs provide by SDE, DMH, DHS.
Design, implement and manage day-to-day operation of the 21st CCLC grant support afterschool program.
Manage daily operations of NAEYC accredit childcare center.
Manage daily operation for a family-own business with responsibility for sales, production, and administrative functions including payroll.
Manage delivery of quality early childhood education programs by establishing an environment of learning and maintaining the integrity of the programs.
Lead a staff of 76 FTE's.

Assistant executive director example responsibilities.

Work in collaboration with hospital departments for achieving a seamless healthcare service delivery system.
Establish and develop relationships with ERP and consulting vendors with the goal of maximizing comparative advantage and cost efficient solution development.
Lead facility through clearing of DHSS and CMS issues.
Secure funding, and position network agencies for changes in healthcare environment.
Monitor cardiac monitors for all monitor patients.
Computerize payroll and quality assurance of staff records.

Center director vs assistant executive director skills

Common center director skills

Customer Service, 12%
Oversight, 8%
Proficiency Testing, 6%
Center Management, 6%
State Regulations, 6%
Federal Regulations, 6%

Common assistant executive director skills

Customer Service, 13%
Healthcare, 12%
Oversight, 7%
Nursing Home, 6%
State Regulations, 4%
Memory Care, 4%

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Center Director
Center Director vs Assistant Executive Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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