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The differences between quality control supervisors and quality leads can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a quality control supervisor, becoming a quality lead takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a quality lead has an average salary of $90,301, which is higher than the $63,930 average annual salary of a quality control supervisor.
The top three skills for a quality control supervisor include safety procedures, product quality and food safety. The most important skills for a quality lead are continuous improvement, product quality, and quality standards.
| Quality Control Supervisor | Quality Lead | |
| Yearly salary | $63,930 | $90,301 |
| Hourly rate | $30.74 | $43.41 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 110,617 | 62,018 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Average age | 46 | 48 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
A quality control supervisor specializes in carrying out and implementing systems and procedures that ensure product quality within an organization. They are primarily responsible for devising priorities and standards, managing schedules to abide by the production timeline, monitoring activities, coordinating with production and quality control personnel, assessing employee performance, and thoroughly discussing new systems for all staff. There are also instances when a quality control supervisor must perform clerical tasks such as producing progress reports and assessments, responding to calls and correspondence, even disseminating notices.
A quality assurance (QA) lead is responsible for organizing and managing the testing of products prior to its release. Your duties will include defining testing standards and strategies, establishing formal QA processes, and overseeing all aspects of QA, such as using best practices and establishing metrics. Additionally, you are responsible for supervising and mentoring QA team members, and developing and implementing scripts, test cases, and procedures. You are also responsible for managing off quality products and developing and institutionalizing ISO complaints.
Quality control supervisors and quality leads have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Control Supervisor | Quality Lead | |
| Average salary | $63,930 | $90,301 |
| Salary range | Between $46,000 And $87,000 | Between $63,000 And $127,000 |
| Highest paying City | South San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Wyoming | California |
| Best paying company | AbbVie | |
| Best paying industry | Pharmaceutical | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a quality control supervisor and a quality lead in terms of educational background:
| Quality Control Supervisor | Quality Lead | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 56% | Bachelor's Degree, 52% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between quality control supervisors' and quality leads' demographics:
| Quality Control Supervisor | Quality Lead | |
| Average age | 46 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 69.7% Female, 30.3% | Male, 58.7% Female, 41.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 20.3% Asian, 4.4% White, 59.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 3.8% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 13.1% Asian, 9.1% White, 69.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 8% |