Operations research manager vs operations director

The differences between operations research managers and operations directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both an operations research manager and an operations director. Additionally, an operations director has an average salary of $104,050, which is higher than the $74,064 average annual salary of an operations research manager.

The top three skills for an operations research manager include research operations, research projects and project management. The most important skills for an operations director are customer service, continuous improvement, and oversight.

Operations research manager vs operations director overview

	Operations Research Manager	Operations Director
Yearly salary	$74,064	$104,050
Hourly rate	$35.61	$50.02
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	291,083	114,993
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	6	6

What does an operations research manager do?

An operations research analysis manager is a key leader in an organization who oversees the collection and analysis of operations data, analyzes the information for deficiencies, and makes recommendations to improve. With a team of operations research analysts, the operations research analysis manager identifies inefficiencies in an operation and offers solutions to eliminate the inefficiencies detected. Operations research analysis managers provide leadership and strategy in the operations research department to help realize better efficiency.

What does an operations director do?

Operations directors oversee all company operations. They have the power to set the direction, change the course of the organization, and reform strategies to ensure efficiency in how the company operates. Operations directors manage business operations effectively by constantly analyzing company data and by anticipating any challenge that may come their way. As such, they make sound business decisions and recommendations that will help strengthen the organization. Operations directors oversee finances, quality control, and even human resources. They ensure that all aspects of the business are considered in making business operations decisions.

Operations research manager vs operations director salary

Operations research managers and operations directors have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Operations Research Manager	Operations Director
Average salary	$74,064	$104,050
Salary range	Between $41,000 And $132,000	Between $65,000 And $164,000
Highest paying City	Stamford, CT	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Connecticut	California
Best paying company	Mayo Clinic	Airbnb
Best paying industry	Pharmaceutical	Finance

Differences between operations research manager and operations director education

There are a few differences between an operations research manager and an operations director in terms of educational background:

	Operations Research Manager	Operations Director
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 64%	Bachelor's Degree, 67%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Operations research manager vs operations director demographics

Here are the differences between operations research managers' and operations directors' demographics:

	Operations Research Manager	Operations Director
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 58.3% Female, 41.7%	Male, 70.6% Female, 29.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 6.3% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between operations research manager and operations director duties and responsibilities

Operations research manager example responsibilities.

Finance and billing accountability across Medicaid, manage care commercial insurance, insurance verification, contract management, and benefits administration.
Assist in report preparation for IRB, CTRC, and other regulatory agencies and/or committees.7.
Reorganize clinical research program, develop new process and procedure guidelines to provide optimal patient care and compliance with FDA standards.
Assist in the preparation of IRB applications and regular correspondence with IRB regarding adverse events, annual renewals and protocol amendments.
Conduct all aspects of the research process including methodology, questionnaire development, data tabulations/analysis through SPSS and final report presentation.
Design and engineer station sortation layout to maximize productivity and to integrate new home delivery process in station during holiday season.

Operations director example responsibilities.

Manage KPI reports from all warranty companies to ensure increasing sales and productivity.
Spearhead governance, security and compliance initiatives to achieve SOX and PCI compliance.
Manage a PMO style team to implement any changes across the global contact centers.
Develop all marketing strategies and materials as well as personally managing key OEM and national accounts.
Manage multiple vendor relationships for RFP development and review, contract negotiation, contract terms management, and accounts payable review.
Provide leadership to manufacturing organization by aligning overall KPIs to achieve near term and long term business objectives.

Operations research manager vs operations director skills

Common operations research manager skills

Research Operations, 13%
Research Projects, 10%
Project Management, 9%
Clinical Trials, 8%
Oversight, 7%
Data Collection, 7%

Common operations director skills

Customer Service, 12%
Continuous Improvement, 7%
Oversight, 7%
Patients, 6%
Project Management, 5%
Human Resources, 4%

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Operations Research Manager
Operations Research Manager vs Operations Director

Updated January 8, 2025

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