Manufacturing team leader vs production supervisor

The differences between manufacturing team leaders and production supervisors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a manufacturing team leader and a production supervisor. Additionally, a production supervisor has an average salary of $63,391, which is higher than the $39,390 average annual salary of a manufacturing team leader.

The top three skills for a manufacturing team leader include continuous improvement, lean manufacturing and GMP. The most important skills for a production supervisor are lean manufacturing, safety procedures, and production schedules.

Manufacturing team leader vs production supervisor overview

	Manufacturing Team Leader	Production Supervisor
Yearly salary	$39,390	$63,391
Hourly rate	$18.94	$30.48
Growth rate	-	-
Number of jobs	135,790	83,529
Job satisfaction	-	4.33
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 55%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	2	2

What does a manufacturing team leader do?

The job of a manufacturing team leader is to oversee and ensure the quality and efficiency of assembling manufactured goods. Typical day-to-day duties include ensuring that team members adhere to standard manufacturing processes and procedures, ensuring awareness among team members of the day-to-day responsibilities and targets, and managing the closures of work orders. In addition, you will be responsible for identifying opportunities for business improvement within the organization, conducting root cause analysis, and addressing problems.

What does a production supervisor do?

Production supervisors are employees who oversee the production process, usually handling activities directly related to people management. They manage employees by ensuring that the production floor employees are doing their work well and are motivated. Production supervisors guide employees and ensure that everyone is working towards company goals. They properly communicate these goals as well as the strategies to meet the set goals. Production supervisors have a direct hand in the hiring and subsequent training of employees. They should have good communication skills, decision-making skills, and leadership skills.

Manufacturing team leader vs production supervisor salary

Manufacturing team leaders and production supervisors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Manufacturing Team Leader	Production Supervisor
Average salary	$39,390	$63,391
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $54,000	Between $43,000 And $91,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Fremont, CA
Highest paying state	Wyoming	California
Best paying company	AstraZeneca	Intuitive Surgical
Best paying industry	Automotive	Automotive

Differences between manufacturing team leader and production supervisor education

There are a few differences between a manufacturing team leader and a production supervisor in terms of educational background:

	Manufacturing Team Leader	Production Supervisor
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 55%	Bachelor's Degree, 54%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Manufacturing team leader vs production supervisor demographics

Here are the differences between manufacturing team leaders' and production supervisors' demographics:

	Manufacturing Team Leader	Production Supervisor
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 79.7% Female, 20.3%	Male, 83.4% Female, 16.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.3% Asian, 4.9% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 17.1% Asian, 5.0% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between manufacturing team leader and production supervisor duties and responsibilities

Manufacturing team leader example responsibilities.

Lead numerous Kaizen blitz efforts to identify and reduce waste.
Manage operations in compliance with strict ISO9001 certification and FDA requirements.
Manage a team of QC inspectors for inspecting automotive components from manufacturing line
Provide technical information to FDA auditor during PAI inspection.
Lead the development of a no batch single piece flow cell utilizing the kaizen process.
Key player in the transformation of the operations in regards execution and practices of GMP's.

Production supervisor example responsibilities.

Manage an run extruders an injection molds.
Utilize MRP system to monitor and manage raw material and finish goods inventory.
Manage employee's schedules, time off requests, vacation and payroll with the KRONOS time management software.
Manage departments responsible for beginning raw material production process using automate CNC control plasma cutting machines.
Lead targeted decision-making across fast-pace production operations for this growth-orient USDA food factory producing quality meat products.
Manage manufacturing department operations to ensure compliance with establish quality specifications, production levels, and FDA regulations.

Manufacturing team leader vs production supervisor skills

Common manufacturing team leader skills

Continuous Improvement, 13%
Lean Manufacturing, 12%
GMP, 6%
Process Improvement, 4%
ISO, 4%
Quality Standards, 4%

Common production supervisor skills

Lean Manufacturing, 9%
Safety Procedures, 6%
Production Schedules, 6%
Quality Standards, 5%
Customer Service, 4%
ISO, 4%

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Manufacturing Team Leader
Manufacturing Team Leader vs Production Supervisor

Updated January 8, 2025

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