Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between market research managers and research directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a market research manager and a research director. Additionally, a research director has an average salary of $108,875, which is higher than the $89,450 average annual salary of a market research manager.
The top three skills for a market research manager include powerpoint, SPSS and data analysis. The most important skills for a research director are research projects, data collection, and healthcare.
| Market Research Manager | Research Director | |
| Yearly salary | $89,450 | $108,875 |
| Hourly rate | $43.00 | $52.34 |
| Growth rate | 19% | 19% |
| Number of jobs | 59,408 | 51,298 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A market research manager is responsible for identifying goals, products, or services through market research. You will lead and oversee a team of researchers, collecting information and data about market segments and reporting them to marketing managers. Your duties will include assisting in the design and evaluation of a marketing campaign in collaboration with other marketing staff, researching and developing strategies on customer retention. Other duties include investigating market conditions, defining and measuring key performance indicators on customer satisfaction.
Research Directors oversee the research initiatives of the company. They are usually deployed in the academe, research facilities, or companies with research and development departments. They set research goals aligned with the company's vision. They also ensure that all research activities are significant and would have an impact. They usually aim to complete research work that would contribute to the advancement of their field. Research Directors provide strategic direction on how to complete their research goals. They guide their team of researchers to work more efficiently and more productively. They also lead the team in networking activities.
Market research managers and research directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Market Research Manager | Research Director | |
| Average salary | $89,450 | $108,875 |
| Salary range | Between $56,000 And $141,000 | Between $68,000 And $171,000 |
| Highest paying City | Montclair, NJ | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Washington |
| Best paying company | Credit Karma | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | Technology |
There are a few differences between a market research manager and a research director in terms of educational background:
| Market Research Manager | Research Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | University of Georgia |
Here are the differences between market research managers' and research directors' demographics:
| Market Research Manager | Research Director | |
| Average age | 37 | 37 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 49.6% Female, 50.4% | Male, 59.0% Female, 41.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.1% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.3% Asian, 11.9% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% | Black or African American, 5.0% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 12.0% Asian, 12.5% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |