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The differences between information security directors and chief information officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 4-6 years to become an information security director, becoming a chief information officer takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, a chief information officer has an average salary of $146,907, which is higher than the $141,813 average annual salary of an information security director.
The top three skills for an information security director include cloud security, risk management and incident response. The most important skills for a chief information officer are CIO, project management, and network infrastructure.
| Information Security Director | Chief Information Officer | |
| Yearly salary | $141,813 | $146,907 |
| Hourly rate | $68.18 | $70.63 |
| Growth rate | 32% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 109,450 | 124,678 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 42 | 52 |
| Years of experience | 6 | - |
An information security director is an executive professional who is responsible for implementing, designing, managing, and allocating all the security measures using technology in an organization. Information security directors are required to observe security vulnerabilities and threats as well as develop strategies to handle security incidents. They must participate in the deployment of security technologies and implement security policies and procedures. Information security directors must also implement education programs on user awareness and security compliance.
A chief information officer, also known as CIO, is responsible for the technological development within the company or organization. Primarily overseeing all information technology-related operations, a chief information officer takes the lead in setting the department's budget, developing strategies that will improve computer systems, and implementing policies to attain significant growth in profit and client base. Furthermore, a chief information officer is in charge of managing the workforce behind computer systems, ensuring their efficiency in accomplishing tasks and projects.
Information security directors and chief information officers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Information Security Director | Chief Information Officer | |
| Average salary | $141,813 | $146,907 |
| Salary range | Between $99,000 And $201,000 | Between $98,000 And $219,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Chegg | Mayer Brown |
| Best paying industry | Real Estate | Agriculture |
There are a few differences between an information security director and a chief information officer in terms of educational background:
| Information Security Director | Chief Information Officer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between information security directors' and chief information officers' demographics:
| Information Security Director | Chief Information Officer | |
| Average age | 42 | 52 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 87.1% Female, 12.9% | Male, 81.4% Female, 18.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 9.0% Asian, 9.6% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.5% Asian, 7.4% White, 76.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 12% |