Membership director vs executive director

The differences between membership directors and executive directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an executive director has an average salary of $127,956, which is higher than the $52,493 average annual salary of a membership director.

The top three skills for a membership director include customer service, front desk and membership database. The most important skills for an executive director are oversight, patients, and customer service.

Membership director vs executive director overview

	Membership Director	Executive Director
Yearly salary	$52,493	$127,956
Hourly rate	$25.24	$61.52
Growth rate	10%	-8%
Number of jobs	22,430	97,471
Job satisfaction	-	4.5
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age	47	49
Years of experience	-	4

What does a membership director do?

A membership director is in charge of membership within various institutions such as fitness centers and clubs. Their duties include increasing business, marketing services, converting patrons to paying members, collecting membership payments, maintaining member records, and collecting feedback from customers. They oversee membership activities for an organization, including developing programs and offering information updates to members.

What does an executive director do?

Executive directors are top management employees who usually function as a chief executive officer. This role is usually seen in non-profit organizations. Executive directors provide strategic direction to the organization, and they ensure that the organization's goals are actualized. They provide guidance to the employees and ensure that the employees have the organization's advocacies at the center of every project or program. They oversee the policies of the organization and create strategies that will bring the organization's programs forward. Executive directors are also responsible for making crucial decisions for the betterment of the organization.

Membership director vs executive director salary

Membership directors and executive directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Membership Director	Executive Director
Average salary	$52,493	$127,956
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $87,000	Between $76,000 And $213,000
Highest paying City	New Rochelle, NY	New York, NY
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	New York
Best paying company	Harley-Davidson	Genentech
Best paying industry	-	Finance

Differences between membership director and executive director education

There are a few differences between a membership director and an executive director in terms of educational background:

	Membership Director	Executive Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Membership director vs executive director demographics

Here are the differences between membership directors' and executive directors' demographics:

	Membership Director	Executive Director
Average age	47	49
Gender ratio	Male, 34.9% Female, 65.1%	Male, 47.0% Female, 53.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 13.3% Asian, 8.2% White, 65.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 7.6% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 11.2% Asian, 5.0% White, 71.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between membership director and executive director duties and responsibilities

Membership director example responsibilities.

Manage the member and provider service department for the commercial and Medicaid lines of business.
Establish and redefine business processes in order to achieve national accreditation through NCQA.
Perform periodic checking of on the cleanliness and order of the gym & locker facilities.
Assist member dentists on a daily basis with Medicaid regulations, policies, and provider credentialing issues.
Participate in the development of the plan's Medicare line of business working alongside all departments and consultants.
Increase prospective members with the use of social networking tools and introducing new media tools: LinkedIn and Facebook.

Executive director example responsibilities.

Manage 10 department heads who supervise a staff of 350 FTE's.
Develop and manage sales teams to assure the highest ROI on the client's investment.
Create and manage a call center for lead programs to support the prospecting activity needs of the FSR.
Freelance blogging to increase website views and ultimately to turn organic content into leads and ROI for small businesses.
Market and manage group and individual insurance programs including health, life, disability, long term care and annuities.
Major accomplishment are to achieve initial NAEYC accreditation.

Membership director vs executive director skills

Common membership director skills

Customer Service, 13%
Front Desk, 10%
Membership Database, 5%
Community Events, 5%
Member Events, 4%
Member Service, 4%

Common executive director skills

Oversight, 10%
Patients, 9%
Customer Service, 5%
Financial Management, 5%
Business Development, 4%
Home Health, 4%

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Membership Director
Membership Director vs Executive Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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