Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between lead technicians and technical product managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a lead technician, becoming a technical product manager takes usually requires 8-10 years. Additionally, a technical product manager has an average salary of $120,052, which is higher than the $90,615 average annual salary of a lead technician.
The top three skills for a lead technician include java, architecture and digital transformation. The most important skills for a technical product manager are technical product, product management, and cloud.
| Lead Technician | Technical Product Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $90,615 | $120,052 |
| Hourly rate | $43.56 | $57.72 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 250,590 | 185,305 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 42 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 10 |
Lead technicians are technicians who oversee the technical needs of a specific project or department. They are usually tenured employees, and their familiarity with the company's technical and technological processes, software, and hardware would be a great advantage in succeeding in their role. Lead technicians are responsible for installing, updating, and maintaining various software and hardware components in the office. They often manage a group of technicians, and they ensure that the group they manage is properly trained and well-versed on the processes of the company. Lead technicians are expected to have strong analytical skills and decision-making skills.
A technical product manager's responsibilities revolve around performing research and analysis to identify consumers' needs, utilizing new technologies to develop strategies and products, coordinating with different teams, and monitoring the entire progress of production. There are also instances when a technical product manager must perform clerical tasks such as producing reports, preparing presentations, responding to issues and concerns promptly, and managing schedules. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage staff to meet goals while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Lead technicians and technical product managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Technician | Technical Product Manager | |
| Average salary | $90,615 | $120,052 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $121,000 | Between $89,000 And $161,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Technology |
There are a few differences between a lead technician and a technical product manager in terms of educational background:
| Lead Technician | Technical Product Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 50% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Business |
| Most common college | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | University of Georgia |
Here are the differences between lead technicians' and technical product managers' demographics:
| Lead Technician | Technical Product Manager | |
| Average age | 42 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.4% Female, 16.6% | Male, 75.8% Female, 24.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.4% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 15.1% White, 53.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |