Chief of operations vs operations director

The differences between chiefs of operations and operations directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a chief of operations and an operations director. Additionally, a chief of operations has an average salary of $124,927, which is higher than the $104,050 average annual salary of an operations director.

The top three skills for a chief of operations include oversight, emergency operations and logistical support. The most important skills for an operations director are customer service, continuous improvement, and oversight.

Chief of operations vs operations director overview

	Chief Of Operations	Operations Director
Yearly salary	$124,927	$104,050
Hourly rate	$60.06	$50.02
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	93,283	114,993
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	6	6

What does a chief of operations do?

The chief of operations is responsible for monitoring the overall operational process of a company, maintaining efficient project management, and accurate project deliverables. They contribute to the implementation of corporate decisions, including the development of the company's policies and procedures. They also support the CEO in board meetings to report the business' performance and identify opportunities to increase brand awareness and boost profitability. The chief of operations handles financial transactions of the business, as well as budgeting and allocating resources for each department.

What does an operations director do?

Operations directors oversee all company operations. They have the power to set the direction, change the course of the organization, and reform strategies to ensure efficiency in how the company operates. Operations directors manage business operations effectively by constantly analyzing company data and by anticipating any challenge that may come their way. As such, they make sound business decisions and recommendations that will help strengthen the organization. Operations directors oversee finances, quality control, and even human resources. They ensure that all aspects of the business are considered in making business operations decisions.

Chief of operations vs operations director salary

Chiefs of operations and operations directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Chief Of Operations	Operations Director
Average salary	$124,927	$104,050
Salary range	Between $86,000 And $181,000	Between $65,000 And $164,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Delaware	California
Best paying company	University of Maryland, Baltimore	Airbnb
Best paying industry	Government	Finance

Differences between chief of operations and operations director education

There are a few differences between a chief of operations and an operations director in terms of educational background:

	Chief Of Operations	Operations Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 57%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Chief of operations vs operations director demographics

Here are the differences between chiefs of operations' and operations directors' demographics:

	Chief Of Operations	Operations Director
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 85.9% Female, 14.1%	Male, 70.6% Female, 29.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 6.3% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between chief of operations and operations director duties and responsibilities

Chief of operations example responsibilities.

Evaluate progress of program plans to determine whether overall command-wide objectives are being accomplish economically with reference to budget and manpower.
Prepare tactical instructions and operational doctrine.
Design security and counterintelligence training and briefings for delivery throughout DHS.
Ensure compliance with federal procedures by leading training and providing PowerPoint presentations.
Select by-name for key intelligence position with world-wide responsibilites supporting combating terrorism.
Draft and disseminate significant activity reports concerning events requiring DIA leadership focus.

Operations director example responsibilities.

Manage KPI reports from all warranty companies to ensure increasing sales and productivity.
Spearhead governance, security and compliance initiatives to achieve SOX and PCI compliance.
Manage a PMO style team to implement any changes across the global contact centers.
Develop all marketing strategies and materials as well as personally managing key OEM and national accounts.
Manage multiple vendor relationships for RFP development and review, contract negotiation, contract terms management, and accounts payable review.
Provide leadership to manufacturing organization by aligning overall KPIs to achieve near term and long term business objectives.

Chief of operations vs operations director skills

Common chief of operations skills

Oversight, 13%
Emergency Operations, 9%
Logistical Support, 8%
Human Resources, 6%
Combat, 6%
Technical Assistance, 5%

Common operations director skills

Customer Service, 12%
Continuous Improvement, 7%
Oversight, 7%
Patients, 6%
Project Management, 5%
Human Resources, 4%

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Chief Of Operations
Chief Of Operations vs Operations Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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