General manager vs associate manager

The differences between general managers and associate 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 and an associate manager. Additionally, an associate manager has an average salary of $83,246, which is higher than the $71,581 average annual salary of a general manager.

The top three skills for a general manager include customer service, cleanliness and food safety. The most important skills for an associate manager are PET, POS, and sales floor.

General manager vs associate manager overview

	General Manager	Associate Manager
Yearly salary	$71,581	$83,246
Hourly rate	$34.41	$40.02
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	442,690	420,292
Job satisfaction	4.25	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	6	6

What does a general manager do?

A general manager is responsible for handling the overall operations in the business. General managers manage the staff tasks efficiently, monitor the productivity and efficiency of the work environment, implement new strategies to improve the business performance, recognize the team's best efforts, and effective allocation of budget resources. A general manager must have excellent communication, decision-making, and critical-thinking skills to identify areas of improvement in handling customer complaints, connecting with vendors and other lines of businesses that will direct the company towards its successful objectives.

What does an associate manager do?

Associate managers are responsible for overseeing the support and clerical staff of the company. They recruit and train employees who perform different tasks that include greeting customers, answering phones, and faxing documents. They also perform other duties, including keeping employees' motivation, ensuring that everyone understands the company's guidelines and policies, and supervising other staff members. To be qualified as an associate manager, one should have a high school diploma, leadership skills, and a strong work ethic. One should also have the necessary computer skills, bookkeeping skills, and customer service skills.

General manager vs associate manager salary

General managers and associate managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	General Manager	Associate Manager
Average salary	$71,581	$83,246
Salary range	Between $40,000 And $126,000	Between $55,000 And $124,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	Washington, DC
Highest paying state	Hawaii	New Jersey
Best paying company	NVIDIA	PayPal
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Finance

Differences between general manager and associate manager education

There are a few differences between a general manager and an associate manager in terms of educational background:

	General Manager	Associate Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

General manager vs associate manager demographics

Here are the differences between general managers' and associate managers' demographics:

	General Manager	Associate Manager
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 70.7% Female, 29.3%	Male, 45.5% Female, 54.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.1% 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 and associate manager duties and responsibilities

General manager example responsibilities.

Generate positive EBITDA and improve cash flow by managing costs and inventory.
Manage all recruiting and training efforts, and develop systems to track ROI comparison results.
Work as a FOH AGM and train to manage all staff functions including training, hiring, food and labor controls.
Develop yearly budget for multiple hotels that include revenue, labor, fix and variable costs to achieve overall EBITDA goal.
Task primarily with building logistics infrastructure, managing operational expenses, and supporting start up strategies.
Train and manage FOH staff and improve overall quality, organization and professionalism of restaurant and bakery.

Associate manager example responsibilities.

Manage payroll interface and process including researching payroll issues and enforcing adherence to audit and department guidelines; develop fit/gap analysis.
Schedule evictions for residents that have no means of paying delinquent rent.
Prepare food for daily plate lunches, take-out orders and in-orders and run kitchen.
Run monthly delinquency report on past due rents and sends notices for lockouts liens & evictions.
Supervise the management of the POS system and approves all cash wrap management, cash auditing, and tip reporting.
Created/Modify PowerPoint presentations for intern training and conferences.

General manager vs associate manager skills

Common general manager skills

Customer Service, 20%
Cleanliness, 18%
Food Safety, 7%
Guest Service, 4%
Payroll, 4%
Math, 4%

Common associate manager skills

PET, 42%
POS, 6%
Sales Floor, 5%
Product Knowledge, 4%
Payroll, 4%
Human Resources, 4%

General Manager vs. similar jobs

General Manager related careers

General Manager related jobs

General Manager jobs by location

Zippia Careers
Executive Management Industry
General Manager
General Manager vs Associate Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse executive management jobs