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The differences between plant managers and continuous improvement managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a plant manager and a continuous improvement manager. Additionally, a plant manager has an average salary of $113,843, which is higher than the $99,644 average annual salary of a continuous improvement manager.
The top three skills for a plant manager include continuous improvement, customer service and safety program. The most important skills for a continuous improvement manager are lean six sigma, sigma, and continuous improvement.
| Plant Manager | Continuous Improvement Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $113,843 | $99,644 |
| Hourly rate | $54.73 | $47.91 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 275,962 | 154,463 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
In general, plant managers are responsible for the entire operations in a manufacturing plant. Plant managers plan, direct, organize, and run the optimum operations of the plant daily. They create and execute organizational or departmental goals procedures, and policies. They aim to increase the manufacturing production and the capacity and flexibility of its assets while keeping its current quality standards and unnecessary costs. They are expected to have a better understanding of the manufacturing industry like equipment use and mechanical aptitude.
A Continuous Improvement Manager initiates and facilitates lean improvement programs and activities. They ensure that progress is maintained on an ongoing basis.
Plant managers and continuous improvement managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Plant Manager | Continuous Improvement Manager | |
| Average salary | $113,843 | $99,644 |
| Salary range | Between $85,000 And $152,000 | Between $74,000 And $133,000 |
| Highest paying City | Richmond, CA | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Koch Industries | |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a plant manager and a continuous improvement manager in terms of educational background:
| Plant Manager | Continuous Improvement Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between plant managers' and continuous improvement managers' demographics:
| Plant Manager | Continuous Improvement Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 93.7% Female, 6.3% | Male, 81.4% Female, 18.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.0% Asian, 6.3% White, 67.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |