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Creative project manager vs product manager

The differences between creative project managers and product managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 8-10 years to become both a creative project manager and a product manager. Additionally, a product manager has an average salary of $111,729, which is higher than the $75,415 average annual salary of a creative project manager.

The top three skills for a creative project manager include digital marketing, creative projects and creative services. The most important skills for a product manager are product management, QA, and product strategy.

Creative project manager vs product manager overview

Creative Project ManagerProduct Manager
Yearly salary$75,415$111,729
Hourly rate$36.26$53.72
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs159,224125,678
Job satisfaction-5
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 80%Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age3939
Years of experience1010

What does a creative project manager do?

Creative Project Managers oversee specific projects in the company. They work in the creative industry, usually with artists. These artists include graphic designers, art directors, photographers, and the like. They ensure project completion and proper coordination between different teams. Due to the nature of the creative industry, they should adapt to changes and be flexible. Creative Project Managers are expected to have extensive experience working in the creative industry and with different artists in the industry. This experience would help them navigate and complete projects.

What does a product manager do?

A product manager is responsible for ensuring product development, providing the best marketing strategies, and effectively handling the sales and marketing team. Product managers' duties include monitoring the market trends and conditions, identifying business opportunities and plan initiatives, and collaborating the product launch process with the appropriate departments. A product manager is also responsible for generating ideas on improving product features, determining timetables and reasonable pricing, and analyzing product sales. A product manager must have excellent strategic and decision-making skills to contribute to its growth and profitability.

Creative project manager vs product manager salary

Creative project managers and product managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Creative Project ManagerProduct Manager
Average salary$75,415$111,729
Salary rangeBetween $51,000 And $110,000Between $81,000 And $152,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateRhode IslandCalifornia
Best paying companyMetaMeta
Best paying industryTechnologyRetail

Differences between creative project manager and product manager education

There are a few differences between a creative project manager and a product manager in terms of educational background:

Creative Project ManagerProduct Manager
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 80%Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common majorGraphic DesignBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of Wisconsin - MadisonUniversity of Georgia

Creative project manager vs product manager demographics

Here are the differences between creative project managers' and product managers' demographics:

Creative Project ManagerProduct Manager
Average age3939
Gender ratioMale, 41.5% Female, 58.5%Male, 65.3% Female, 34.7%
Race ratioBlack 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%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 Percentage10%10%

Differences between creative project manager and product manager duties and responsibilities

Creative project manager example responsibilities.

  • Manage a team of .Net and PHP developers.
  • Manage creative team (editorial and design) copywriting, proofreading
  • Manage creative team to develop packaging, hang tags and POS assets for all products.
  • Manage migration of the defect/change request intake process from SharePoint to JIRA workflow management system.
  • Manage multiple digital and rich media advertising campaign creative, teams & lifecycles including conception, production, QA and implementation.
  • Manage leading fashion editorial photography studio, including set and lighting design.
  • Show more

Product manager example responsibilities.

  • Lead collaborative efforts within the PMO, vendors, customers, and internal stakeholders.
  • Manage developers accountable for coding, database development, UI implementation, and system architecture.
  • Manage inventory service levels / overstocks /defective inventory and supplier buy-in opportunities to maximize ROI.
  • Lead customization of the company's administrative SaaS software solution by defining features and functionality for internal/external stakeholder teams.
  • Lead weekly meetings between engineering, sales/marketing, and QA departments to facilitate communication, collaboration and resolution of product issues.
  • Handle design and specification of administration system requirements to efficiently manage, operate, and support client API configurations and sessions.
  • Show more

Creative project manager vs product manager skills

Common creative project manager skills
  • Digital Marketing, 9%
  • Creative Projects, 8%
  • Creative Services, 5%
  • PowerPoint, 4%
  • Client Facing, 4%
  • Project Management Software, 4%
Common product manager skills
  • Product Management, 11%
  • QA, 5%
  • Product Strategy, 5%
  • Project Management, 4%
  • Market Research, 4%
  • User Stories, 4%

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