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Digital project manager vs product development manager

The differences between digital project managers and product development 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 digital project manager and a product development manager. Additionally, a product development manager has an average salary of $113,437, which is higher than the $86,043 average annual salary of a digital project manager.

The top three skills for a digital project manager include project management, digital marketing and wordpress. The most important skills for a product development manager are product development, project management, and lifecycle management.

Digital project manager vs product development manager overview

Digital Project ManagerProduct Development Manager
Yearly salary$86,043$113,437
Hourly rate$41.37$54.54
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs170,687166,871
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 78%Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Average age3939
Years of experience1010

What does a digital project manager do?

Digital Project Managers oversee specific projects or long-term initiatives in the company. They specialize in digital projects such as company websites, mobile applications, online content, and e-commerce platforms. They ensure that the project is progressing based on the projected timeline. They manage tasks and delegate accordingly. Digital Project Managers also handle the project's budget. They ensure that resources are properly allocated. At the end of the project, they make sure that all of the project goals are met.

What does a product development manager do?

A product development manager spearheads the development of new products within a company. Most of the time, their responsibilities revolve around conducting marketing research and analysis to determine consumers' needs, coordinating with the product development team to come up with new ideas, proposing business plans to the executives, and creating prototypes. A product development manager must also present a cost analysis, produce progress reports, and address inquiries and concerns. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the staff, all while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.

Digital project manager vs product development manager salary

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

Digital Project ManagerProduct Development Manager
Average salary$86,043$113,437
Salary rangeBetween $57,000 And $128,000Between $84,000 And $152,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaNevada
Best paying companyAppleMeta
Best paying industryMediaRetail

Differences between digital project manager and product development manager education

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

Digital Project ManagerProduct Development Manager
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 78%Bachelor's Degree, 73%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of GeorgiaUniversity of Georgia

Digital project manager vs product development manager demographics

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

Digital Project ManagerProduct Development Manager
Average age3939
Gender ratioMale, 44.4% Female, 55.6%Male, 62.2% Female, 37.8%
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 digital project manager and product development manager duties and responsibilities

Digital project manager example responsibilities.

  • Manage ongoing site optimization according to SEO and SEM best practices.
  • Utilize and manage development in ecommerce and CMS platforms including Magento, Wordpress and Drupal.
  • Manage SEO client strategies throughout the duration of the project and after the project is completed.
  • Manage new site design, data integration and front-end programming and customer relationships management (CRM) programs.
  • Manage day-to day project responsibilities for all digital components for a new CRM campaign for the Wendy s account.
  • Manage all business and website development efforts for the online marketing team, including support of three B2C businesses.
  • Show more

Product development manager example responsibilities.

  • Used PLM tools to track, manage, and organize the development process.
  • Design front-end UX for e-tailor website, manage customer service tracking and CRM solutions.
  • Manage the entire development and implementation process for a $750K SaaS solution for education.
  • Lead acquisition of StudyinBritain.com, expanding client base to schools in the UK and Ireland.
  • Lead development of open API, blogs, custom video player, numerous sites, and internal applications.
  • Establish reliable and predictable agile process, with measure KPIs and quantitative metrics; manage release schedule and risk.
  • Show more

Digital project manager vs product development manager skills

Common digital project manager skills
  • Project Management, 15%
  • Digital Marketing, 12%
  • WordPress, 5%
  • Client Facing, 3%
  • Jira, 3%
  • Digital Transformation, 3%
Common product development manager skills
  • Product Development, 11%
  • Project Management, 9%
  • Lifecycle Management, 7%
  • Product Management, 6%
  • R, 5%
  • Customer Service, 4%

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