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The differences between plant managers and operations 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 an operations manager. Additionally, a plant manager has an average salary of $113,843, which is higher than the $76,894 average annual salary of an operations manager.
The top three skills for a plant manager include continuous improvement, customer service and safety program. The most important skills for an operations manager are customer service, logistics, and continuous improvement.
| Plant Manager | Operations Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $113,843 | $76,894 |
| Hourly rate | $54.73 | $36.97 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 275,962 | 343,868 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| 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.
Operations managers are in charge of running the main business of the organization. They ensure that the business is running smoothly from an operations standpoint. They make sure that the processes in place produce the necessary output by implementing quality control measures. They also manage finances and ensure that there is enough budget to keep the operations of the business running. They also ensure that the production of goods or services is cost-efficient. Operations managers also handle people-related concerns. They are responsible for interviewing candidates, choosing the ones to hire, and ensuring that individuals assigned to operations are properly trained.
Plant managers and operations managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Plant Manager | Operations Manager | |
| Average salary | $113,843 | $76,894 |
| Salary range | Between $85,000 And $152,000 | Between $47,000 And $123,000 |
| Highest paying City | Richmond, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Delaware |
| Best paying company | Koch Industries | McKinsey & Company Inc |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a plant manager and an operations manager in terms of educational background:
| Plant Manager | Operations Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 63% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between plant managers' and operations managers' demographics:
| Plant Manager | Operations Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 93.7% Female, 6.3% | Male, 69.4% Female, 30.6% |
| 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, 6.3% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.4% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |