Parks recreation director vs site leader

The differences between parks recreation directors and site leaders can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a parks recreation director and a site leader. Additionally, a site leader has an average salary of $64,886, which is higher than the $48,942 average annual salary of a parks recreation director.

The top three skills for a parks recreation director include aquatics, recreation programs and flag football. The most important skills for a site leader are customer service, project management, and logistics.

Parks recreation director vs site leader overview

	Parks Recreation Director	Site Leader
Yearly salary	$48,942	$64,886
Hourly rate	$23.53	$31.20
Growth rate	10%	10%
Number of jobs	7,782	56,932
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	4	4

What does a parks recreation director do?

A parks recreation director manages and leads the operations of a park's recreation department. You will be responsible for department oversight, budget management and requisition, coordination with other town council departments, recreation publicity campaigns, and overseeing capital expenditure. Parks recreation directors are the policy and strategy leads for city parks and submit regular reports to the council parks boards. Staff recruitment and supervision, community engagement in recreation activities, and ensuring policy compliance are other core duties.

What does a site leader do?

A site leader is responsible for managing the staff's performance, ensuring the smooth delivery of daily operations, and guiding the successful project completion by maximizing the staff's productivity within the specified timeframe and budget goals. Site leaders work closely with the clients, together with the site manager, to identify their specifications and requirements, as well as providing progress updates and suggesting design adjustments as needed. A site leader also performs safety inspections, making sure that all the staff follows the required operational procedures and regulations to prevent hazards and delays in project deliverables.

Parks recreation director vs site leader salary

Parks recreation directors and site leaders have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Parks Recreation Director	Site Leader
Average salary	$48,942	$64,886
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $85,000	Between $31,000 And $134,000
Highest paying City	Cupertino, CA	New York, NY
Highest paying state	Mississippi	Mississippi
Best paying company	Icma-rc	BP America Inc
Best paying industry	Automotive	-

Differences between parks recreation director and site leader education

There are a few differences between a parks recreation director and a site leader in terms of educational background:

	Parks Recreation Director	Site Leader
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 59%
Most common major	Recreation Management	Business
Most common college	California State University - Long Beach	Stanford University

Parks recreation director vs site leader demographics

Here are the differences between parks recreation directors' and site leaders' demographics:

	Parks Recreation Director	Site Leader
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 69.1% Female, 30.9%	Male, 65.6% Female, 34.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 5.1% White, 61.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 12.1% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 5.1% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between parks recreation director and site leader duties and responsibilities

Parks recreation director example responsibilities.

Manage recreation staff and programming for assist living and rehabilitation and skil nursing facilities.
Perform minor first aid and CPR as needed.
Acquire MDS data for the use of the clinical reimbursement team, as well as assessed patients.
Examine injure persons and administer first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, if necessary, using training and medical supplies and equipment.
Maintain written and personal communication with general public and local community through ongoing PowerPoint presentations, weekly newsletters and monthly newspaper.

Site leader example responsibilities.

Lead ISO 13485 and CE regulatory submission efforts for Europe, Canada, and Australia.
Manage necessary inventory reporting activities, including month to month variance, require KPI, age inventory action plans.
Manage logistics requirements for assign installations to include facility access, classroom materials, office supplies/equipment and computers.
Develop multiple in-store processes to manage payroll and successfully increase financial numbers through decreasing operational expense and increasing operational income.
Hold a CPR certification along with first aid.
Participate in all regulatory audits (FDA, ISO, and internal).

Parks recreation director vs site leader skills

Common parks recreation director skills

Aquatics, 17%
Recreation Programs, 8%
Flag Football, 6%
Recreational Facilities, 5%
CPR, 5%
Program Development, 4%

Common site leader skills

Customer Service, 11%
Project Management, 8%
Logistics, 7%
Patients, 6%
Continuous Improvement, 5%
CPR, 4%

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Parks Recreation Director vs Site Leader

Updated January 8, 2025

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