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The differences between senior category managers and product managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 8-10 years to become both a senior category manager and a product manager. Additionally, a senior category manager has an average salary of $116,590, which is higher than the $111,729 average annual salary of a product manager.
The top three skills for a senior category manager include category strategy, project management and strategic sourcing. The most important skills for a product manager are product management, QA, and product strategy.
| Senior Category Manager | Product Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $116,590 | $111,729 |
| Hourly rate | $56.05 | $53.72 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 66,599 | 125,678 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Years of experience | 10 | 10 |
In a retail setting, a senior category manager is in charge of devising strategies to market different product categories. Their responsibilities revolve around coordinating with other departments to gather necessary data, performing market research and analysis to find new business opportunities, identifying the needs of consumers, and keeping abreast of the latest trends. Furthermore, as a senior category manager, it is essential to lead and serve as a mentor to junior category managers, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
A product manager is responsible for ensuring product development, providing the best marketing strategies, and effectively handling the sales and marketing team. Product managers' duties include monitoring the market trends and conditions, identifying business opportunities and plan initiatives, and collaborating the product launch process with the appropriate departments. A product manager is also responsible for generating ideas on improving product features, determining timetables and reasonable pricing, and analyzing product sales. A product manager must have excellent strategic and decision-making skills to contribute to its growth and profitability.
Senior category managers and product managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Category Manager | Product Manager | |
| Average salary | $116,590 | $111,729 |
| Salary range | Between $83,000 And $162,000 | Between $81,000 And $152,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | California |
| Best paying company | Devon Energy | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Retail |
There are a few differences between a senior category manager and a product manager in terms of educational background:
| Senior Category Manager | Product Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 74% | Bachelor's Degree, 72% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | University of Georgia |
Here are the differences between senior category managers' and product managers' demographics:
| Senior Category Manager | Product Manager | |
| Average age | 39 | 39 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 69.6% Female, 30.4% | Male, 65.3% Female, 34.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |