Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between chief communications officers and public relations 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 chief communications officer and a public relations director. Additionally, a chief communications officer has an average salary of $115,086, which is higher than the $94,692 average annual salary of a public relations director.
The top three skills for a chief communications officer include crisis communications, external communications and CCO. The most important skills for a public relations director are press releases, web content, and pr campaigns.
| Chief Communications Officer | Public Relations Director | |
| Yearly salary | $115,086 | $94,692 |
| Hourly rate | $55.33 | $45.52 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 80,711 | 31,693 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 81% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A chief communications officer oversees internal relations and researches public employees. Most of the chief communications officers spend a massive amount of time interacting with the chief marketing officers of their organization. They are responsible for management issues and may offer risk management in industries that are prone to hazard, risk, and product failure. They provide wise counsel to the senior team whenever major decisions are debated. They act in many ways as representatives of many publics who are not in the room when these decisions are made. These officers also help the organization translate strategy to action.
A public relations director is an individual who is employed to design and implement marketing strategies that can cultivate the relationship between a company and the media. Public relations directors collaborate with the internal team to boost brand awareness and maximize brand consistency in all advertising efforts. They must arrange interviews and press releases so that they can promote their company and its products or services. They also maintain relationships with the media and should manage sensitive issues to maintain the company's good reputation.
Chief communications officers and public relations directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Chief Communications Officer | Public Relations Director | |
| Average salary | $115,086 | $94,692 |
| Salary range | Between $63,000 And $208,000 | Between $59,000 And $150,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Napa, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | Nevada |
| Best paying company | - | Exelixis |
| Best paying industry | - | Internet |
There are a few differences between a chief communications officer and a public relations director in terms of educational background:
| Chief Communications Officer | Public Relations Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 81% |
| Most common major | Communication | Communication |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between chief communications officers' and public relations directors' demographics:
| Chief Communications Officer | Public Relations Director | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 59.5% Female, 40.5% | Male, 35.9% Female, 64.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 5.1% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 6.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 5.1% White, 74.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 16% | 16% |