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The differences between senior technical directors and technical project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a senior technical director, becoming a technical project manager takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a senior technical director has an average salary of $148,603, which is higher than the $108,205 average annual salary of a technical project manager.
The top three skills for a senior technical director include cloud, project management and product development. The most important skills for a technical project manager are project management, technical project, and scrum.
| Senior Technical Director | Technical Project Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $148,603 | $108,205 |
| Hourly rate | $71.44 | $52.02 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 16% |
| Number of jobs | 83,169 | 209,820 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 1 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
Senior technical directors are professionals who are responsible for providing technical direction within a software company, engineering firm, film studio, theatre company, or television studio. These directors are required to manage staff members and are responsible for developing, testing, and validating new products for manufacturing engineering projects. They must develop strategic direction for engineering projects to achieve high levels of customer satisfaction and exceed aggressive financial targets. In theatre management, these senior technicians must also provide technical services that include advanced audio and visual production.
The role of technical project managers is to oversee the planning and management of projects within a company. They are considered as the lead subject matter expert in terms of technology concerns. They have varied duties that include ensuring the completion of projects within an established budget and time frame, hiring and training support members, and improving resource management and project planning. They also communicate with stakeholders and collaborate with other departments, all to attain a common goal.
Senior technical directors and technical project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Technical Director | Technical Project Manager | |
| Average salary | $148,603 | $108,205 |
| Salary range | Between $103,000 And $214,000 | Between $81,000 And $142,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New York | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a senior technical director and a technical project manager in terms of educational background:
| Senior Technical Director | Technical Project Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 70% | Bachelor's Degree, 66% |
| Most common major | Computer Science | Business |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between senior technical directors' and technical project managers' demographics:
| Senior Technical Director | Technical Project Manager | |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.7% Female, 16.3% | Male, 73.2% Female, 26.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 6.4% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | 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% |
| LGBT Percentage | 14% | 11% |