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The differences between senior project specialists and senior project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a senior project manager has an average salary of $110,947, which is higher than the $87,213 average annual salary of a senior project specialist.
The top three skills for a senior project specialist include project management, powerpoint and status reports. The most important skills for a senior project manager are project management, program management, and portfolio.
| Senior Project Specialist | Senior Project Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $87,213 | $110,947 |
| Hourly rate | $41.93 | $53.34 |
| Growth rate | 11% | 16% |
| Number of jobs | 111,859 | 183,210 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 6 | - |
The job of a senior project specialist is to manage a portfolio of projects and ensure that these projects achieve quality development outcomes. You will perform a variety of duties that include providing day-to-day support to teams, preparing and reviewing requests for project-related activities, and overseeing the project's financial aspects by reviewing monthly invoices. In addition, you will monitor monthly costs and track contract expenditures against total obligated funds and budget. As a senior project specialist, it is also your responsibility to recruit short- and long-term personnel.
Senior project managers are experienced employees assigned to oversee a specific project in the organization. They manage the project from conception to execution. They are onboard the project from the ideation phase, providing valuable insights to ensure the success of the project. Senior project managers are also in charge of managing the budget, ensuring that the expected timelines are followed, adjusting strategies when needed, and guiding project team members. It is important for senior project managers to be good leaders and communicators. They should be able to balance the interests of all the stakeholders involved in the project. They should have good interpersonal skills and decision-making skills.
Senior project specialists and senior project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Project Specialist | Senior Project Manager | |
| Average salary | $87,213 | $110,947 |
| Salary range | Between $67,000 And $112,000 | Between $82,000 And $148,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Idaho | California |
| Best paying company | Amazon | Roku |
| Best paying industry | Insurance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior project specialist and a senior project manager in terms of educational background:
| Senior Project Specialist | Senior Project Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between senior project specialists' and senior project managers' demographics:
| Senior Project Specialist | Senior Project Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 50.0% Female, 50.0% | Male, 71.4% Female, 28.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 7.5% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 8.8% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 10% |