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The differences between commercial managers and project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a commercial manager has an average salary of $100,167, which is higher than the $91,578 average annual salary of a project manager.
The top three skills for a commercial manager include project management, customer service and business development. The most important skills for a project manager are project management, project scope, and customer service.
| Commercial Manager | Project Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $100,167 | $91,578 |
| Hourly rate | $48.16 | $44.03 |
| Growth rate | 5% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 104,252 | 167,116 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4.17 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 46 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 8 | - |
A commercial manager is in charge of devising strategies for optimal procedures. Their responsibilities typically revolve around liaising with clients to determine their needs, coordinating with different departments to gather necessary data, performing research and analysis to identify the strengths and weaknesses of existing systems, and developing new business plans for profit growth and efficient workflow. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the staff to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Project managers oversee a specific project related to the organization's business. They manage the whole project from inception to evaluation. They initiate planning with involved departments, follow-through on the plans, ensure smooth execution of the plans, and evaluate the project for further improvements should these be needed. In line with this, project managers also ensure that the project is cost-efficient and well within the budget. They also manage the different work teams involved in the project and ensure that things are running smoothly on this aspect as well.
Commercial managers and project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Commercial Manager | Project Manager | |
| Average salary | $100,167 | $91,578 |
| Salary range | Between $70,000 And $143,000 | Between $64,000 And $129,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | California |
| Best paying company | Cheniere Energy | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Technology |
There are a few differences between a commercial manager and a project manager in terms of educational background:
| Commercial Manager | Project Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 58% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Southern California | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between commercial managers' and project managers' demographics:
| Commercial Manager | Project Manager | |
| Average age | 46 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 73.3% Female, 26.7% | Male, 68.9% Female, 31.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.2% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 4.1% White, 78.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 65.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 7% | 10% |