Research manager vs project manager

The differences between research managers 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 $82,894 average annual salary of a research manager.

The top three skills for a research manager include market research, analytics and quantitative research. The most important skills for a project manager are project management, project scope, and customer service.

Research manager vs project manager overview

	Research Manager	Project Manager
Yearly salary	$82,894	$91,578
Hourly rate	$39.85	$44.03
Growth rate	19%	8%
Number of jobs	48,867	167,116
Job satisfaction	-	4.17
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Average age	37	47
Years of experience	6	-

What does a research manager do?

A Research Manager performs research, data collection, and economic, statistical, and demographic analysis. They also determine and implement research and development strategies, policies, and plans.

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.

Research manager vs project manager salary

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

	Research Manager	Project Manager
Average salary	$82,894	$91,578
Salary range	Between $51,000 And $133,000	Between $64,000 And $129,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Washington	California
Best paying company	Meta	The Citadel
Best paying industry	Finance	Technology

Differences between research manager and project manager education

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

	Research Manager	Project Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Georgia	University of Pennsylvania

Research manager vs project manager demographics

Here are the differences between research managers' and project managers' demographics:

	Research Manager	Project Manager
Average age	37	47
Gender ratio	Male, 47.9% Female, 52.1%	Male, 68.9% Female, 31.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 13.1% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%	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 Percentage	10%	10%

Differences between research manager and project manager duties and responsibilities

Research manager example responsibilities.

Manage IRB submissions and complete all IRB requirements in conjunction with the HICCC s regulatory department.
Lead social path-to-purchase study, incorporating social media analytics into insight community to identify spectrum of social engagement among customers.
Conduct QA for time and testing of products.
Implement document data extraction through online web-base research and sources.
Direct analytical and logistician research teams to produce in-depth studies and analyses on logistics, maintenance and transportation issues.
Coordinate communications with the IRB, NIH and other institutional entities that fund, support, collaborate and regulate research.

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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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Research manager vs project manager skills

Common research manager skills

Market Research, 8%
Analytics, 6%
Quantitative Research, 6%
Data Analysis, 5%
Patients, 5%
Data Collection, 4%

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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