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The differences between office managers/receptionist and desk managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an office manager/receptionist and a desk manager. Additionally, a desk manager has an average salary of $75,140, which is higher than the $39,696 average annual salary of an office manager/receptionist.
The top three skills for an office manager/receptionist include patients, customer service and payroll. The most important skills for a desk manager are CRM, sales process, and quality customer service.
| Office Manager/Receptionist | Desk Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $39,696 | $75,140 |
| Hourly rate | $19.08 | $36.12 |
| Growth rate | -8% | - |
| Number of jobs | 58,318 | 45,871 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 33% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
An office manager/receptionist specializes in performing administrative duties in an office or department. One of their primary responsibilities is to greet visitors or clients, answer inquiries, respond to calls and correspondence, arrange appointments, manage schedules, and receive documents or messages. They may also assess staff performance, disseminate information, delegate tasks, and provide support for team members. Furthermore, should there be any issues, it is essential to address and resolve them, all while adhering to the company's policies and standards.
A desk manager's responsibilities focus on facilitating communication and performing organizational support tasks to maintain the smooth flow of operations at offices. Although the extent of their duties primarily depends on their company or employment industry, it usually includes handling calls and correspondence, answering inquiries, resolving issues and concerns, forwarding calls and messages, arranging appointments and schedules, organizing files, and overseeing various communication materials. In some offices, a desk manager manages different teams, supervising their performance while enforcing company standards and policies.
Office managers/receptionist and desk managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Office Manager/Receptionist | Desk Manager | |
| Average salary | $39,696 | $75,140 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $57,000 | Between $44,000 And $127,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Eureka, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | New York |
| Best paying company | - | ServiceNow |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between an office manager/receptionist and a desk manager in terms of educational background:
| Office Manager/Receptionist | Desk Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 33% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | California State University - Bakersfield | California State University - Bakersfield |
Here are the differences between office managers/receptionist' and desk managers' demographics:
| Office Manager/Receptionist | Desk Manager | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 7.0% Female, 93.0% | Male, 54.9% Female, 45.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.8% Asian, 5.2% White, 60.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 9.7% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.0% Asian, 5.3% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |