General manager/director vs unit manager

The differences between general managers/director and unit managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a general manager/director and a unit manager. Additionally, a general manager/director has an average salary of $127,274, which is higher than the $60,561 average annual salary of a unit manager.

The top three skills for a general manager/director include customer service, financial performance and payroll. The most important skills for a unit manager are quality care, patients, and federal regulations.

General manager/director vs unit manager overview

	General Manager/Director	Unit Manager
Yearly salary	$127,274	$60,561
Hourly rate	$61.19	$29.12
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	223,160	366,932
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	6	6

General manager/director vs unit manager salary

General managers/director and unit managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	General Manager/Director	Unit Manager
Average salary	$127,274	$60,561
Salary range	Between $84,000 And $191,000	Between $38,000 And $96,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	Los Angeles, CA
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	New Jersey
Best paying company	NVIDIA	Microsoft
Best paying industry	Transportation	Finance

Differences between general manager/director and unit manager education

There are a few differences between a general manager/director and a unit manager in terms of educational background:

	General Manager/Director	Unit Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 67%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common major	Business	Nursing
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

General manager/director vs unit manager demographics

Here are the differences between general managers/director' and unit managers' demographics:

	General Manager/Director	Unit Manager
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 82.0% Female, 18.0%	Male, 42.4% Female, 57.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between general manager/director and unit manager duties and responsibilities

General manager/director example responsibilities.

Manage hotel website, online rates and RFP's.
Manage and all OEM port actions and recalls ensuring compliance.
Create a plan and schedule to achieve ISO 9000 2000 certification.
Developed/Monitore key performance metrics (KPI's) and manage DC's performance to these KPI's.
Manage the marketing automation transition from Marketo to Pardot.
Prepare invoices, manage all administrative office paperwork and payroll.

Unit manager example responsibilities.

Develop corporate culture utilizing skills attain through ERP and TQM management training.
Set and achieve goal of entire staff certification in ACLS and EKG interpretation.
Manage departmental resources, staffing plans, KPIs, strategic initiatives, and budget.
Enhance scheduling visibility to reduce age work-in-progress (WIP) and achieve EBIT goal.
Lead and manage the delivery of patient-care to a 50 patient unit in a LTC facility.
Achieve all major milestones in preparation for major ERP system upgrade and cultural change for organization.

General manager/director vs unit manager skills

Common general manager/director skills

Customer Service, 12%
Financial Performance, 11%
Payroll, 7%
Beverage Operations, 5%
Human Resources, 5%
R, 4%

Common unit manager skills

Quality Care, 17%
Patients, 10%
Federal Regulations, 8%
Resident Care, 8%
Customer Service, 6%
Compassion, 4%

General Manager/Director vs. similar jobs

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Executive Management Industry
General Manager/Director
General Manager/Director vs Unit Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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