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The differences between managers, software quality assurance and quality assurance consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a manager, software quality assurance and a quality assurance consultant. Additionally, a manager, software quality assurance has an average salary of $122,736, which is higher than the $86,486 average annual salary of a quality assurance consultant.
The top three skills for a manager, software quality assurance include software quality, software development and test cases. The most important skills for a quality assurance consultant are QA, manual test cases, and regression.
| Manager, Software Quality Assurance | Quality Assurance Consultant | |
| Yearly salary | $122,736 | $86,486 |
| Hourly rate | $59.01 | $41.58 |
| Growth rate | 21% | - |
| Number of jobs | 108,570 | 91,395 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Software Quality Assurance Managers are responsible for overseeing the entire development process of software in ensuring they comply with the organization's standards. Their duties include implementing test case documentation, conducting a document risk analysis, recording test results, perform automated test coding, determine product quality benchmarks, and streamlining testing processes. Besides that, they are involved in identifying software bugs, discovering user problems, assessing product features, analyzing user interface functionality, and researching new technologies.
A quality assurance consultant specializes in recommending and optimizing quality-control procedures ensuring efficiency and smooth workflow. They typically conduct research and analysis to identify the strengths and weaknesses of current quality control operations, implement solutions on problem areas, review policies and regulations, and coordinate with other staff to gather necessary data, analyzing them to find new opportunities for improvement. Furthermore, as a quality assurance consultant, it is essential to recommend solutions in adherence to the company's policies and regulations, including its mission and vision.
Managers, software quality assurance and quality assurance consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Manager, Software Quality Assurance | Quality Assurance Consultant | |
| Average salary | $122,736 | $86,486 |
| Salary range | Between $92,000 And $163,000 | Between $67,000 And $110,000 |
| Highest paying City | Napa, CA | Redwood City, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | New Hampshire |
| Best paying company | Southern California Edison | |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Finance |
There are a few differences between a manager, software quality assurance and a quality assurance consultant in terms of educational background:
| Manager, Software Quality Assurance | Quality Assurance Consultant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between managers, software quality assurance' and quality assurance consultants' demographics:
| Manager, Software Quality Assurance | Quality Assurance Consultant | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 73.0% Female, 27.0% | Male, 57.9% Female, 42.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |