Pension consultant vs benefits & payroll administrator

The differences between pension consultants and benefits & payroll administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a pension consultant and a benefits & payroll administrator. Additionally, a pension consultant has an average salary of $74,793, which is higher than the $50,662 average annual salary of a benefits & payroll administrator.

The top three skills for a pension consultant include calculation, plan administration and ERISA. The most important skills for a benefits & payroll administrator are human resources, HRIS, and cobra.

Pension consultant vs benefits & payroll administrator overview

	Pension Consultant	Benefits & Payroll Administrator
Yearly salary	$74,793	$50,662
Hourly rate	$35.96	$24.36
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	6,583	61,356
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 83%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	6	6

Pension consultant vs benefits & payroll administrator salary

Pension consultants and benefits & payroll administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Pension Consultant	Benefits & Payroll Administrator
Average salary	$74,793	$50,662
Salary range	Between $52,000 And $106,000	Between $37,000 And $68,000
Highest paying City	-	San Jose, CA
Highest paying state	-	New Jersey
Best paying company	-	HGA
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between pension consultant and benefits & payroll administrator education

There are a few differences between a pension consultant and a benefits & payroll administrator in terms of educational background:

	Pension Consultant	Benefits & Payroll Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 83%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Pension consultant vs benefits & payroll administrator demographics

Here are the differences between pension consultants' and benefits & payroll administrators' demographics:

	Pension Consultant	Benefits & Payroll Administrator
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 51.7% Female, 48.3%	Male, 11.7% Female, 88.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 7.9% White, 62.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 7.8% White, 62.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between pension consultant and benefits & payroll administrator duties and responsibilities

Pension consultant example responsibilities.

Recruit to manage key client engagements to define global strategic sourcing projects and solutions to utilize technology and advance ERP systems.
Research and compile documents to assist senior legal counsel specific to ERISA litigation.
Fast learner, note for quickly developing strong knowledge of IRS rules for insurance industry.
Leverage sales skills to identify customer needs and create new opportunities to transfer assets to TIAA-CREF.
Pioneer the Spanish initiative, in taking the first calls in Spanish for TIAA-CREF along with a small team.
Review court orders and relate legal documents to ensure compliance with applicable IRC provisions, ERISA, and qualify plan requirements.

Benefits & payroll administrator example responsibilities.

Manage HRIS, recruiting, training, and time and attendance programs as well as trouble shooting.
Create reports using SQL database and manage reports, perform from internet-base tools for research projects need for client insight.
Ensure accuracy of all benefit enrollments and life status changes record in the HRIS to provide vendors with accurate eligibility information.
Complete weekly internal payroll reports and fund employee accounts (HSA and 401K).
Process benefit elections, merit raises, salary changes, garnishments, cobra and severance.
Administer employee benefits programs including group medical, dental, vision, group life and FSA.

Pension consultant vs benefits & payroll administrator skills

Common pension consultant skills

Calculation, 19%
Plan Administration, 14%
ERISA, 13%
Government Filings, 12%
Plan Provisions, 11%
Plan Design, 10%

Common benefits & payroll administrator skills

Human Resources, 6%
HRIS, 6%
Cobra, 6%
Payroll System, 4%
Open Enrollment, 4%
ADP Payroll, 4%

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Pension Consultant
Pension Consultant vs Benefits & Payroll Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

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