Finishing manager vs lead operator

The differences between finishing managers and lead operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a finishing manager and a lead operator. Additionally, a lead operator has an average salary of $88,429, which is higher than the $70,117 average annual salary of a finishing manager.

The top three skills for a finishing manager include lean manufacturing, production schedules and direct reports. The most important skills for a lead operator are customer service, HR, and process improvement.

Finishing manager vs lead operator overview

	Finishing Manager	Lead Operator
Yearly salary	$70,117	$88,429
Hourly rate	$33.71	$42.51
Growth rate	3%	7%
Number of jobs	10,710	87,338
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	2	2

Finishing manager vs lead operator salary

Finishing managers and lead operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Finishing Manager	Lead Operator
Average salary	$70,117	$88,429
Salary range	Between $39,000 And $123,000	Between $54,000 And $142,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	New Jersey
Best paying company	Levi Strauss & Co.	Meta
Best paying industry	Hospitality	Technology

Differences between finishing manager and lead operator education

There are a few differences between a finishing manager and a lead operator in terms of educational background:

	Finishing Manager	Lead Operator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 45%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Finishing manager vs lead operator demographics

Here are the differences between finishing managers' and lead operators' demographics:

	Finishing Manager	Lead Operator
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 89.9% Female, 10.1%	Male, 73.5% Female, 26.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 13.6% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 4.9% White, 62.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 4.6% White, 59.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between finishing manager and lead operator duties and responsibilities

Finishing manager example responsibilities.

Attain facility commissioning after a successful FDA audit.
Pace manufactures aluminum die-cast parts for barbecue grills, cars and many other products.
Update part counts in the AS400 system as parts move through their specific process.
Work in a manufacturing environment, which produces aluminum coil sheet make to customer specs.
Used various power tools; drill press, routers, table see planers, round sanders and jitter bugs.
Create and implement lot number production on finish good cartons immediately without impacting customer delivery to be GMP compliant.

Lead operator example responsibilities.

Plan, organize, and lead Kaizen activities as well as managed the cost reduction activities from idea to implementation.
Contact potential REO listing brokers achieving the highest return call rate.
Create UAT scripts and utilize statistical process controls to manage loan process quality and ensure consistency.
Achieve goals in various metrics, from sales to plan, payroll, additional services, print center.
Manage and organize incoming records and publications for use on SharePoint.
Need method to proactively manage the business improving cross-functional collaboration & KPI visibility.

Finishing manager vs lead operator skills

Common finishing manager skills

Lean Manufacturing, 13%
Production Schedules, 9%
Direct Reports, 8%
Safety Procedures, 8%
Customer Complaints, 8%
ISO, 6%

Common lead operator skills

Customer Service, 18%
HR, 10%
Process Improvement, 6%
Project Management, 6%
Continuous Improvement, 6%
Safety Procedures, 4%