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The differences between risk managers and underwriters can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a risk manager has an average salary of $116,072, which is higher than the $61,751 average annual salary of an underwriter.
The top three skills for a risk manager include oversight, risk assessments and project management. The most important skills for an underwriter are customer service, investor guidelines, and mortgage loans.
| Risk Manager | Underwriter | |
| Yearly salary | $116,072 | $61,751 |
| Hourly rate | $55.80 | $29.69 |
| Growth rate | 17% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 75,795 | 8,510 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 3 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 46 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 8 | - |
A risk manager is responsible for analyzing potential risks that may affect the organization's operations, reputation, and market credibility. Risk managers identify risk controls and discuss business contingency plans for unforeseen circumstances to prevent delays in operational services. They also develop compliance training and programs for all the employees to provide them the awareness of the safety and security regulations within the company premises. A risk manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills, especially on handling and investigating cases that might compromise the business stability and financial status.
An underwriter's duties depend on the line of work or industry involved, such as mortgage companies, insurance, or lending firms. However, an Underwriter's responsibility will mainly revolve around using their extensive expertise on how a company will achieve financial gains, and assessing the possible financial risks of a client by reviewing various aspects to determine their capacity to uphold monetary obligations. Most of the time, the Underwriter's tasks will also involve evaluating a client's credit history, health, assets, overall financial history.
Risk managers and underwriters have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Risk Manager | Underwriter | |
| Average salary | $116,072 | $61,751 |
| Salary range | Between $84,000 And $160,000 | Between $39,000 And $96,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Credit Karma | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a risk manager and an underwriter in terms of educational background:
| Risk Manager | Underwriter | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 66% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between risk managers' and underwriters' demographics:
| Risk Manager | Underwriter | |
| Average age | 46 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 59.3% Female, 40.7% | Male, 38.4% Female, 61.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.5% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 14.4% Asian, 10.1% White, 63.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 2.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.6% Asian, 5.6% White, 72.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 9% |