Public works director vs executive

The differences between public works directors and executives can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes More than 10 years to become both a public works director and an executive. Additionally, an executive has an average salary of $108,285, which is higher than the $88,965 average annual salary of a public works director.

The top three skills for a public works director include public works, infrastructure and building maintenance. The most important skills for an executive are customer service, digital transformation, and healthcare.

Public works director vs executive overview

	Public Works Director	Executive
Yearly salary	$88,965	$108,285
Hourly rate	$42.77	$52.06
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	14,361	83,869
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Average age	52	52
Years of experience	-	-

What does a public works director do?

Public Works Directors can expect an average salary of $70K per year in a career that will demand strong communication skills, planning, organizational, and problem-solving skills. Also, strong leadership will be a must for implementing and recommending alternative courses of action for administrative problems. This career choice requires a bachelor's degree in public administration, business administration, liberal arts, or law and presents responsibilities such as daily maintenance of a city's infrastructure services, such as sewer, sanitation, or street maintenance, as well as sanitary sewer operations.

What does an executive do?

An Executive's responsibilities vary depending on an organization or company. However, most of the time, it involves a great deal of leadership and communication. An Executive must oversee and direct employees towards particular sets of goals and vision, create strategies and plans that will benefit the company's financial gains and workforce, and as well as evaluate and analyze the progress of various company departments. Moreover, an Executive holds the power of decision-making, such as in the aspects of budget, promotions, and policies.

Public works director vs executive salary

Public works directors and executives have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Public Works Director	Executive
Average salary	$88,965	$108,285
Salary range	Between $58,000 And $134,000	Between $63,000 And $184,000
Highest paying City	San Rafael, CA	Providence, RI
Highest paying state	California	Rhode Island
Best paying company	Icma-rc	Capgemini
Best paying industry	Government	-

Differences between public works director and executive education

There are a few differences between a public works director and an executive in terms of educational background:

	Public Works Director	Executive
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 61%
Most common major	Civil Engineering	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Public works director vs executive demographics

Here are the differences between public works directors' and executives' demographics:

	Public Works Director	Executive
Average age	52	52
Gender ratio	Male, 91.4% Female, 8.6%	Male, 56.0% Female, 44.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 7.5% White, 76.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 7.6% White, 76.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between public works director and executive duties and responsibilities

Public works director example responsibilities.

Manage key controls, CCTV, safety devices, and training activities.
Conceptualise, initiate & independently manage innovative after-school & lunch programs, and innovative successful school fundraiser.
Manage, delegate and perform facility repairs, apartment renovations, preventive maintenance and inventory control utilizing CMMS program for maintenance.
Provide management oversight of safety and training programs, ensure quality management certification and OSHA standards are maintain.
Complete all EPA require monthly testing.
Help with on air promotions and giveaways.

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Executive example responsibilities.

Manage capital investments and operating costs to generate ROI, IRR and cash flow.
Facilitate KPI dashboard for actual performance to forecast/targets and drive action plans to achieve them.
Manage reputation for search engine optimization, and reputation of website and business as a whole through SEO.
Manage several multi-phase DoD programs and projects simultaneously.
Manage events for fundraising, donor recognition and alumni relations.
Delegate & execute human resources, payroll management, marketing/sales techniques training & development.

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Public works director vs executive skills

Common public works director skills

Public Works, 12%
Infrastructure, 10%
Building Maintenance, 8%
Oversight, 6%
Project Management, 6%
Storm Water, 4%

Common executive skills

Customer Service, 20%
Digital Transformation, 15%
Healthcare, 10%
Customer Satisfaction, 8%
Financial Statements, 5%
Business Development, 4%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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