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Program officer vs project manager

The differences between program officers and project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a project manager has an average salary of $91,578, which is higher than the $79,553 average annual salary of a program officer.

The top three skills for a program officer include project management, program management and excellent interpersonal. The most important skills for a project manager are project management, project scope, and customer service.

Program officer vs project manager overview

Program OfficerProject Manager
Yearly salary$79,553$91,578
Hourly rate$38.25$44.03
Growth rate12%8%
Number of jobs118,383167,116
Job satisfaction-4.17
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 62%Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Average age4547
Years of experience6-

What does a program officer do?

A program officer is an essential part of a foundation or charitable organization. It is up to program officers to supervise program progress and proposals, seek grants, manage projects, and oversee budgets. They generally guarantee that an organization's activities and programs are met with the vision and mission statements of that foundation. It is the program officer's responsibility to complete various tasks in completing the demands of this position. Moreover, their job includes developing their staff, implementation, and daily management of activities.

What does a project manager do?

Project managers oversee a specific project related to the organization's business. They manage the whole project from inception to evaluation. They initiate planning with involved departments, follow-through on the plans, ensure smooth execution of the plans, and evaluate the project for further improvements should these be needed. In line with this, project managers also ensure that the project is cost-efficient and well within the budget. They also manage the different work teams involved in the project and ensure that things are running smoothly on this aspect as well.

Program officer vs project manager salary

Program officers and project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Program OfficerProject Manager
Average salary$79,553$91,578
Salary rangeBetween $53,000 And $117,000Between $64,000 And $129,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companyBNP ParibasThe Citadel
Best paying industryFinanceTechnology

Differences between program officer and project manager education

There are a few differences between a program officer and a project manager in terms of educational background:

Program OfficerProject Manager
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 62%Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of PennsylvaniaUniversity of Pennsylvania

Program officer vs project manager demographics

Here are the differences between program officers' and project managers' demographics:

Program OfficerProject Manager
Average age4547
Gender ratioMale, 47.1% Female, 52.9%Male, 68.9% Female, 31.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 14.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 13.4% Asian, 5.0% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 65.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage14%10%

Differences between program officer and project manager duties and responsibilities

Program officer example responsibilities.

  • Manage request for proposals (RFP) processes, and oversee contractors/vendors for research-relate activities.
  • Manage a political party strengthening program in Colombia and a civil society strengthening program in Peru from NDI's main office.
  • Lead the introduction and upgrade of wireless infrastructure at remote locations to ensure adherence with internal and international wireless standards.
  • Follow privacy guidelines (HIPAA).
  • Increase immunization coverage for the different age groups.
  • Improve store rates for hitting all internal sales and QA goals.
    • Show more

Project manager example responsibilities.

  • Schedule and manage the GCP audit process.
  • Define, develop and manage metrics and KPIs systems for new product business group.
  • Manage the application process for the FDA medical device, minority and small business certifications.
  • Manage multiple projects and resources simultaneously while mentoring, coaching and implementing best practices, SOX and HIPAA compliance standards.
  • Lead teams using the Informatica ETL tool for the design and development of multiple financial and risk enterprise data warehouses.
  • Administer and manage Salesforce requirements.
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Program officer vs project manager skills

Common program officer skills
  • Project Management, 9%
  • Program Management, 7%
  • Excellent Interpersonal, 5%
  • PowerPoint, 5%
  • Public Health, 5%
  • Professional Development, 5%
Common project manager skills
  • Project Management, 23%
  • Project Scope, 6%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • Infrastructure, 5%
  • Status Reports, 4%
  • Risk Management, 3%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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