Post job

Public affairs manager vs communications lead

The differences between public affairs managers and communications leads can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a public affairs manager, becoming a communications lead takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a communications lead has an average salary of $96,988, which is higher than the $84,758 average annual salary of a public affairs manager.

The top three skills for a public affairs manager include external stakeholders, press releases and government relations. The most important skills for a communications lead are project management, strategic communications, and HR.

Public affairs manager vs communications lead overview

Public Affairs ManagerCommunications Lead
Yearly salary$84,758$96,988
Hourly rate$40.75$46.63
Growth rate8%12%
Number of jobs24,98420,413
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age4245
Years of experience46

What does a public affairs manager do?

Psychology associates are entry-level professionals who assist psychologists with assessing, diagnosing, and treating individuals with mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders. These associates are required to provide psychological services for children and adults who are under the supervision of a licensed psychologist. They must conduct assessments on individuals to identify psychological, emotional, and behavioral issues after they are discharged from hospitals. Psychology associates must also design and facilitate individual and group therapy programs specifically for adolescents who are involved in substance abuse.

What does a communications lead do?

The global senior program manager acts as a coordinator for the organization's projects and performs various tasks including supervision, account management, daily staff assignments, budget planning, cost control, and tracking program expenses by collaborating with various global departments to enhance all global programs. He/she should have excellent analytical, decision-making, leadership, and organization skills and knowledge about project management to be able to oversee and organize activities to ensure its compliance with the organization's goals.

Public affairs manager vs communications lead salary

Public affairs managers and communications leads have different pay scales, as shown below.

Public Affairs ManagerCommunications Lead
Average salary$84,758$96,988
Salary rangeBetween $55,000 And $129,000Between $67,000 And $139,000
Highest paying CitySan Francisco, CASan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companyMetaMeta
Best paying industryPharmaceuticalInternet

Differences between public affairs manager and communications lead education

There are a few differences between a public affairs manager and a communications lead in terms of educational background:

Public Affairs ManagerCommunications Lead
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 77%Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common majorCommunicationBusiness
Most common collegeNorthwestern UniversityUniversity of Pennsylvania

Public affairs manager vs communications lead demographics

Here are the differences between public affairs managers' and communications leads' demographics:

Public Affairs ManagerCommunications Lead
Average age4245
Gender ratioMale, 48.8% Female, 51.2%Male, 41.4% Female, 58.6%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 9.2% Asian, 5.1% White, 74.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%Black or African American, 11.8% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.0% Asian, 5.1% White, 62.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage16%14%

Differences between public affairs manager and communications lead duties and responsibilities

Public affairs manager example responsibilities.

  • Respond to media queries, write news releases and manage media engagements while acting as spokesperson for several multifacete organizations.
  • Respond to media queries, write news releases and manage media engagements while acting as spokesperson for several multifacete organizations.
  • Establish air show hashtags to auto-populate the wing s Facebook page with images taken by viewers in the crowd.
  • Track and optimize SEM and SEO for international online marketing campaigns.
  • Support SEO strategy to drive traffic to website, e-store and B2B sites.
  • Coordinate with USDA scientists to ensure accurate information before publishing.
  • Show more

Communications lead example responsibilities.

  • Lead content migration of old intranet to new SharePoint platform.
  • Manage editorial calendar and writing content for digital assets including intranet and external web.
  • Lead copywriting for newly launch Chinese language website LeEco.com/Chinese to attract Chinese American customers.
  • Manage intranet content, with responsibility for project news, executive visibility, community activities, educational outreach.
  • Manage and overseen housing operations, administration of HUD programs, supervise maintenance and/or improvements of residential properties.
  • Serve as SharePoint site administrator, creating intranet, surveys and resource repository.
  • Show more

Public affairs manager vs communications lead skills

Common public affairs manager skills
  • External Stakeholders, 14%
  • Press Releases, 6%
  • Government Relations, 6%
  • Strategic Communications, 5%
  • Community Relations, 5%
  • Community Outreach, 5%
Common communications lead skills
  • Project Management, 9%
  • Strategic Communications, 6%
  • HR, 5%
  • Customer Service, 5%
  • Community Outreach, 4%
  • Digital Marketing, 4%

Browse executive management jobs