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The differences between organizational development consultants and workforce development specialists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an organizational development consultant and a workforce development specialist. Additionally, an organizational development consultant has an average salary of $76,706, which is higher than the $43,666 average annual salary of a workforce development specialist.
The top three skills for an organizational development consultant include human resources, project management and professional development. The most important skills for a workforce development specialist are social services, training programs, and HR.
| Organizational Development Consultant | Workforce Development Specialist | |
| Yearly salary | $76,706 | $43,666 |
| Hourly rate | $36.88 | $20.99 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 63,542 | 80,041 |
| Job satisfaction | 1 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 45 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
An organizational development consultant is primarily responsible for performing research and analysis to help businesses determine ways to optimize processes and workforce. Their responsibilities also include assessing the company's existing operations and systems, evaluating employees' progress, devising strategies to boost productivity and efficiency, creating new programs for training and development, providing advice on various aspects, and sharing expertise in acquiring the right talents during hiring processes. Furthermore, as a consultant, it is essential to lead the development efforts, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
A workforce development specialist is responsible for designing and conducting training and development programs to significantly improve organizational and individual performance. You will perform a few duties that include evaluating training delivery modes, such as virtual or in-person to optimize training effectiveness and costs, developing, obtaining, or organizing training guides and procedure manuals, and coordinating the placement of trainees. As a workforce development specialist, you also have to choose and assign training instructors and negotiating contracts with clients.
Organizational development consultants and workforce development specialists have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Organizational Development Consultant | Workforce Development Specialist | |
| Average salary | $76,706 | $43,666 |
| Salary range | Between $52,000 And $112,000 | Between $28,000 And $66,000 |
| Highest paying City | Campbell, CA | Roseville, CA |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Citrix | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Insurance | Transportation |
There are a few differences between an organizational development consultant and a workforce development specialist in terms of educational background:
| Organizational Development Consultant | Workforce Development Specialist | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Boston University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between organizational development consultants' and workforce development specialists' demographics:
| Organizational Development Consultant | Workforce Development Specialist | |
| Average age | 45 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 41.5% Female, 58.5% | Male, 33.6% Female, 66.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 4.1% White, 63.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 11.6% Unknown, 6.3% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 5.8% White, 58.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 18% | 12% |