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Director vs executive

The differences between directors and executives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become a director, becoming an executive takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, a director has an average salary of $113,489, which is higher than the $108,285 average annual salary of an executive.

The top three skills for a director include healthcare, customer service and oversight. The most important skills for an executive are customer service, digital transformation, and healthcare.

Director vs executive overview

DirectorExecutive
Yearly salary$113,489$108,285
Hourly rate$54.56$52.06
Growth rate8%6%
Number of jobs230,71183,869
Job satisfaction5-
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 64%Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age4052
Years of experience6-

What does a director do?

Directors work in show business, whether in a film, a television show, or a theatre production. They are responsible for bringing the material to life. They work with the writers to get a clear vision of how the production should look. They lead the production team in planning for the production, identifying filming or rehearsing schedules, casting for roles, and other aspects that need to be decided upon. Directors provide direction to the actors to ensure that the actors understand their role and will be able to effectively convey emotions to the audience. They also manage all other crew members and communicate their expectations clearly so that everyone on the set is working towards one vision.

What does an executive do?

An Executive's responsibilities vary depending on an organization or company. However, most of the time, it involves a great deal of leadership and communication. An Executive must oversee and direct employees towards particular sets of goals and vision, create strategies and plans that will benefit the company's financial gains and workforce, and as well as evaluate and analyze the progress of various company departments. Moreover, an Executive holds the power of decision-making, such as in the aspects of budget, promotions, and policies.

Director vs executive salary

Directors and executives have different pay scales, as shown below.

DirectorExecutive
Average salary$113,489$108,285
Salary rangeBetween $66,000 And $192,000Between $63,000 And $184,000
Highest paying CityNew York, NYProvidence, RI
Highest paying stateNew YorkRhode Island
Best paying companyMayo ClinicCapgemini
Best paying industryFinance-

Differences between director and executive education

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

DirectorExecutive
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 64%Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeStanford UniversityUniversity of Pennsylvania

Director vs executive demographics

Here are the differences between directors' and executives' demographics:

DirectorExecutive
Average age4052
Gender ratioMale, 53.2% Female, 46.8%Male, 56.0% Female, 44.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 7.6% White, 76.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage14%12%

Differences between director and executive duties and responsibilities

Director example responsibilities.

  • Manage water metering programs for NYC and national portfolio.
  • Collaborate with the CPA to manage financials and reporting / distribution to physicians.
  • Manage OEM manufacturing partners for making bulk solutions, product fills and final packaging.
  • Lead company's first deep-fill structural project, bring company into EPA compliance, establish effective QA-QC program.
  • Develop company website entirely as well as wrote and manage the SEO and upkeep for overall site maintenance.
  • Manage the company's hotel portfolio operations and assets, including renovation, new build, conversions, and rebranding.
  • Show more

Executive example responsibilities.

  • Manage capital investments and operating costs to generate ROI, IRR and cash flow.
  • Facilitate KPI dashboard for actual performance to forecast/targets and drive action plans to achieve them.
  • Manage reputation for search engine optimization, and reputation of website and business as a whole through SEO.
  • Manage several multi-phase DoD programs and projects simultaneously.
  • Manage events for fundraising, donor recognition and alumni relations.
  • Delegate & execute human resources, payroll management, marketing/sales techniques training & development.
  • Show more

Director vs executive skills

Common director skills
  • Healthcare, 10%
  • Customer Service, 10%
  • Oversight, 7%
  • Project Management, 6%
  • Human Resources, 4%
  • Business Development, 4%
Common executive skills
  • Customer Service, 20%
  • Digital Transformation, 15%
  • Healthcare, 10%
  • Customer Satisfaction, 8%
  • Financial Statements, 5%
  • Business Development, 4%

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