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Service delivery manager vs project manager

The differences between service delivery managers and project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a service delivery manager has an average salary of $102,213, which is higher than the $91,578 average annual salary of a project manager.

The top three skills for a service delivery manager include service delivery, project management and cloud. The most important skills for a project manager are project management, project scope, and customer service.

Service delivery manager vs project manager overview

Service Delivery ManagerProject Manager
Yearly salary$102,213$91,578
Hourly rate$49.14$44.03
Growth rate16%8%
Number of jobs71,475167,116
Job satisfaction-4.17
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 67%Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Average age4747
Years of experience8-

What does a service delivery manager do?

A service delivery manager is primarily responsible for overseeing department operations, ensuring everything is running smoothly and that all customers receive optimal services. They are also responsible for performing technical tasks such as addressing issues and concerns, troubleshooting, spearheading system repairs and maintenance, and performing corrective measures. They also have clerical duties such as producing progress reports and presentations, maintaining data and records, managing budgets and expenditures, setting goals, assessing workforce performance, and adhering to deadlines. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the team, all while prioritizing customer satisfaction.

What does a project manager do?

Project managers oversee a specific project related to the organization's business. They manage the whole project from inception to evaluation. They initiate planning with involved departments, follow-through on the plans, ensure smooth execution of the plans, and evaluate the project for further improvements should these be needed. In line with this, project managers also ensure that the project is cost-efficient and well within the budget. They also manage the different work teams involved in the project and ensure that things are running smoothly on this aspect as well.

Service delivery manager vs project manager salary

Service delivery managers and project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Service Delivery ManagerProject Manager
Average salary$102,213$91,578
Salary rangeBetween $74,000 And $140,000Between $64,000 And $129,000
Highest paying CityStamford, CTSan Francisco, CA
Highest paying stateConnecticutCalifornia
Best paying companyMcKinsey & Company IncThe Citadel
Best paying industryFinanceTechnology

Differences between service delivery manager and project manager education

There are a few differences between a service delivery manager and a project manager in terms of educational background:

Service Delivery ManagerProject Manager
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 67%Bachelor's Degree, 68%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeCarnegie Mellon UniversityUniversity of Pennsylvania

Service delivery manager vs project manager demographics

Here are the differences between service delivery managers' and project managers' demographics:

Service Delivery ManagerProject Manager
Average age4747
Gender ratioMale, 72.3% Female, 27.7%Male, 68.9% Female, 31.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 12.7% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%Black or African American, 7.7% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.9% Asian, 9.0% White, 65.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage11%10%

Differences between service delivery manager and project manager duties and responsibilities

Service delivery manager example responsibilities.

  • Manage and maintain VCE Vblock, Cisco networking, EMC storage, and VMware server / desktop infrastructure.
  • Manage internal global IPVPN network services, comprise of approximately 1.6K routers / switches / Wi-Fi access points.
  • Manage the back office PBX for VoIP customers which includes porting of phones and ordering new hardware from 3rd party vendors.
  • Leverage the SDLC incremental release model to manage the design and implementation of a new integrate billing and check processing system.
  • Manage and execute ERP implementation and optimization work.
  • Manage virtualization of two data centers and 72 disparate satellite locations.
  • Show more

Project manager example responsibilities.

  • Schedule and manage the GCP audit process.
  • Define, develop and manage metrics and KPIs systems for new product business group.
  • Manage the application process for the FDA medical device, minority and small business certifications.
  • Manage multiple projects and resources simultaneously while mentoring, coaching and implementing best practices, SOX and HIPAA compliance standards.
  • Lead teams using the Informatica ETL tool for the design and development of multiple financial and risk enterprise data warehouses.
  • Administer and manage Salesforce requirements.
  • Show more

Service delivery manager vs project manager skills

Common service delivery manager skills
  • Service Delivery, 16%
  • Project Management, 7%
  • Cloud, 6%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • Customer Satisfaction, 5%
  • Client Facing, 4%
Common project manager skills
  • Project Management, 23%
  • Project Scope, 6%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • Infrastructure, 5%
  • Status Reports, 4%
  • Risk Management, 3%

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