Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between project team leads and senior project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a senior project manager has an average salary of $110,947, which is higher than the $105,306 average annual salary of a project team lead.
The top three skills for a project team lead include project management, R and project scope. The most important skills for a senior project manager are project management, program management, and portfolio.
| Project Team Lead | Senior Project Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $105,306 | $110,947 |
| Hourly rate | $50.63 | $53.34 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 16% |
| Number of jobs | 125,539 | 183,210 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | - |
A project team lead sets up the expectations for the team members. Project team leads are in charge of setting the direction for the team members. They see to it that the members will not stray from the team's goals. They lead and engage in project works. It is their job to maintain the dynamics of the team. It is their aim not to fail in their management and leadership skills. They need to have conflict and resolution skills, communication skills, attention to detail, and patience.
Senior project managers are experienced employees assigned to oversee a specific project in the organization. They manage the project from conception to execution. They are onboard the project from the ideation phase, providing valuable insights to ensure the success of the project. Senior project managers are also in charge of managing the budget, ensuring that the expected timelines are followed, adjusting strategies when needed, and guiding project team members. It is important for senior project managers to be good leaders and communicators. They should be able to balance the interests of all the stakeholders involved in the project. They should have good interpersonal skills and decision-making skills.
Project team leads and senior project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Project Team Lead | Senior Project Manager | |
| Average salary | $105,306 | $110,947 |
| Salary range | Between $80,000 And $137,000 | Between $82,000 And $148,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Citi | Roku |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a project team lead and a senior project manager in terms of educational background:
| Project Team Lead | Senior Project Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between project team leads' and senior project managers' demographics:
| Project Team Lead | Senior Project Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 67.6% Female, 32.4% | Male, 71.4% Female, 28.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 7.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 8.8% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |