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The differences between retail sales supervisors and department supervisors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a retail sales supervisor and a department supervisor. Additionally, a department supervisor has an average salary of $47,300, which is higher than the $33,983 average annual salary of a retail sales supervisor.
The top three skills for a retail sales supervisor include sales floor, store operations and store management. The most important skills for a department supervisor are store management, product knowledge, and plumbing.
| Retail Sales Supervisor | Department Supervisor | |
| Yearly salary | $33,983 | $47,300 |
| Hourly rate | $16.34 | $22.74 |
| Growth rate | - | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 292,906 | 216,893 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 45% |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Retail sales supervisors are professionals who are responsible for supervising retail staff members to sell products and services to customers in a retail store environment. These supervisors must develop marketing strategies such as creating mailers, launching online advertising campaigns, and promoting in-store sales to help the store achieve profit and keep selling merchandise regularly. They must hire and train new sales associates to ensure that they are performing their job duties well. Retail sales supervisors must also monitor their stock inventory to ensure that popular items are being restocked on shelves.
A department supervisor's role is to oversee and ensure a business operation's efficiency in a particular area. Acting as a leader, it is their responsibility to develop strategies on meeting goals within a timeline and ensure that the workforce is functioning effectively in a harmonious environment. Furthermore, a department supervisor is in charge of setting goals such as budget and results, evaluating employees' performances and activities, training new members of the workforce, handling and resolving issues, and enforcing the company's policies and regulations.
Retail sales supervisors and department supervisors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Retail Sales Supervisor | Department Supervisor | |
| Average salary | $33,983 | $47,300 |
| Salary range | Between $28,000 And $40,000 | Between $33,000 And $66,000 |
| Highest paying City | Seattle, WA | Lakewood, NJ |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Nestlé | Club |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Finance |
There are a few differences between a retail sales supervisor and a department supervisor in terms of educational background:
| Retail Sales Supervisor | Department Supervisor | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 53% | Bachelor's Degree, 45% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | SUNY College of Technology at Delhi | SUNY College of Technology at Delhi |
Here are the differences between retail sales supervisors' and department supervisors' demographics:
| Retail Sales Supervisor | Department Supervisor | |
| Average age | 43 | 43 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 51.1% Female, 48.9% | Male, 57.9% Female, 42.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 8.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 6.9% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 6.8% White, 61.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |