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The differences between professional services consultants and principal consultants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a principal consultant has an average salary of $116,478, which is higher than the $110,145 average annual salary of a professional services consultant.
The top three skills for a professional services consultant include professional services, architecture and cloud. The most important skills for a principal consultant are cloud, business development, and C #.
| Professional Services Consultant | Principal Consultant | |
| Yearly salary | $110,145 | $116,478 |
| Hourly rate | $52.95 | $56.00 |
| Growth rate | 9% | 11% |
| Number of jobs | 156,160 | 143,753 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 43 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | - |
A professional services consultant supports their employer achieved short-term and long-term business needs. They provide beneficial information and analysis for upper management to use in decision making. Generally, professional services consultants may offer help in a variety of areas depending on their area of expertise. For example, a consultant with business strategy expertise may help to implement new techniques for greater cost-saving efficiency. Other professional services consultants may also assist other related businesses, such as financial planning and legal issues. Moreover, this position is mostly full time and in an office setting.
A principal consultant is responsible for evaluating business' needs and opportunities, identifying potential leads to create project proposals, and maintaining strong business relationships that would generate revenues and increase the organization's profitability. Principal consultants must be up-to-date with the current market trends to ensure that the business adapts to the industry's changes. They also initiate new product development to expand its brand image, working closely with the marketing team for marketing strategies and promotions.
Professional services consultants and principal consultants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Professional Services Consultant | Principal Consultant | |
| Average salary | $110,145 | $116,478 |
| Salary range | Between $81,000 And $148,000 | Between $90,000 And $150,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | Oregon |
| Best paying company | Apple | Pure Storage |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a professional services consultant and a principal consultant in terms of educational background:
| Professional Services Consultant | Principal Consultant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between professional services consultants' and principal consultants' demographics:
| Professional Services Consultant | Principal Consultant | |
| Average age | 43 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 69.3% Female, 30.7% | Male, 75.8% Female, 24.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.1% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 14.6% White, 59.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 6.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 8.8% White, 70.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 11% |