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Director of advancement vs chief of staff

The differences between directors of advancement and chiefs of staff can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a director of advancement, becoming a chief of staff takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, a chief of staff has an average salary of $130,835, which is higher than the $117,155 average annual salary of a director of advancement.

The top three skills for a director of advancement include analytics, professional development and project management. The most important skills for a chief of staff are PET, team support, and project management.

Director of advancement vs chief of staff overview

Director Of AdvancementChief Of Staff
Yearly salary$117,155$130,835
Hourly rate$56.32$62.90
Growth rate8%6%
Number of jobs11,473124,272
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 67%Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age4252
Years of experience4-

What does a director of advancement do?

The director of advancement plays an important role in the management of a development program that has the potential to advance a company's goals and mission. The typical duties for this role include leading employee communication functions, establishing asset level budget across the portfolio, and working closely with other departments, including compliance, investor relations, and tax/accounting. Additionally, you will be responsible for implementing an online solution for event management and email communication. As the director of the advancement, you should be understanding of employee needs and operational goals.

What does a chief of staff do?

A chief of staff primarily supports an executive through performing various administrative tasks. Most of their responsibilities revolve around collaborating with other executive support personnel to devise strategies that will help the company, responding to inquiries and correspondence, approving communications letters, managing schedules, setting appointments, and serving as an advisor to the executive. Furthermore, when it comes to issues and disputes, the chief of staff must be quick to conduct research and perform damage control to help the executive and the company rise from the occasion.

Director of advancement vs chief of staff salary

Directors of advancement and chiefs of staff have different pay scales, as shown below.

Director Of AdvancementChief Of Staff
Average salary$117,155$130,835
Salary rangeBetween $74,000 And $184,000Between $85,000 And $200,000
Highest paying CityMenlo Park, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateNevadaCalifornia
Best paying companyFirst Republic BankLyft
Best paying industryTechnologyStart-up

Differences between director of advancement and chief of staff education

There are a few differences between a director of advancement and a chief of staff in terms of educational background:

Director Of AdvancementChief Of Staff
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 67%Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeStanford UniversityUniversity of Pennsylvania

Director of advancement vs chief of staff demographics

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

Director Of AdvancementChief Of Staff
Average age4252
Gender ratioMale, 54.6% Female, 45.4%Male, 62.0% Female, 38.0%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 9.1% Asian, 5.1% White, 74.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 7.8% White, 76.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage16%12%

Differences between director of advancement and chief of staff duties and responsibilities

Director of advancement example responsibilities.

  • Program development includes managing and building strong relationships with corporate and affinity partners to secure sponsorship and career enhancement for alumni
  • Raise millions of dollars for ACS through tax-advantage charitable remainder trusts, gift annuities, and bequests.
  • Generate major gifts, including bequests and charitable gift annuities, by cultivating relationships with Eskaton residents.
  • Coordinate among cross-functional business departments including investor relations, risk, trading desk, compliance, tax/accounting, and portfolio administration.
  • Work with administrative leadership with community relations, including promotional events and media communication.

Chief of staff example responsibilities.

  • Lead headquarters (HQ) operations staff.
  • Manage the G3's fiscal year budget planning, formulation, and execution.
  • Supervise the G2 administrative section and maintain and manage the G2 budget and material resources.
  • Manage the predeployment training and the deployment process to receiving commands, and subsequent redeployment and deactivation.
  • Manage budgets of $75,000 to $22 million paying keen attention to cost containment and ROI.
  • Credit for managing and improving the HAZMAT program, which serve as a benchmark example for the base community.
  • Show more

Director of advancement vs chief of staff skills

Common director of advancement skills
  • Analytics, 22%
  • Professional Development, 12%
  • Project Management, 7%
  • Alumni Relations, 5%
  • Strategic Plan, 4%
  • Donor Relations, 4%
Common chief of staff skills
  • PET, 15%
  • Team Support, 11%
  • Project Management, 8%
  • Oversight, 7%
  • Direct Reports, 6%
  • Marketing Campaigns, 6%

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