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Strategic development director vs development manager

The differences between strategic development directors and development 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 strategic development director and a development manager. Additionally, a strategic development director has an average salary of $127,778, which is higher than the $110,678 average annual salary of a development manager.

The top three skills for a strategic development director include strategic development, business development and RFP. The most important skills for a development manager are project management, customer service, and patients.

Strategic development director vs development manager overview

Strategic Development DirectorDevelopment Manager
Yearly salary$127,778$110,678
Hourly rate$61.43$53.21
Growth rate10%10%
Number of jobs92,285111,137
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 69%Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Average age3939
Years of experience1010

What does a strategic development director do?

A strategic development director is responsible for systematic fundraising and holistic collection of revenue. They foster an ongoing relationship with donors and carry out fundraising campaigns. They work to develop strategic goals for their organization and to create short- and long-term plans to meet those goals.

What does a development manager do?

A development manager is responsible for assisting existing clients or potential clients of the services they need. A development manager serves as the initial point of contact for the clients to answer their inquiries and concerns before proceeding with a contract. Development managers usually arrange meetings with clients, analyze business opportunities, improve marketing initiatives to attract clients, research the industry's latest trends, create proposals, and assist in training new staff members. A development manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills to handle staff performance and build professional relationships with clients.

Strategic development director vs development manager salary

Strategic development directors and development managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

Strategic Development DirectorDevelopment Manager
Average salary$127,778$110,678
Salary rangeBetween $89,000 And $182,000Between $76,000 And $159,000
Highest paying CityOakland, CARichmond, CA
Highest paying stateCaliforniaCalifornia
Best paying companySunPowerAkin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld
Best paying industryTechnologyTechnology

Differences between strategic development director and development manager education

There are a few differences between a strategic development director and a development manager in terms of educational background:

Strategic Development DirectorDevelopment Manager
Most common degreeBachelor's Degree, 69%Bachelor's Degree, 72%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeUniversity of GeorgiaUniversity of Georgia

Strategic development director vs development manager demographics

Here are the differences between strategic development directors' and development managers' demographics:

Strategic Development DirectorDevelopment Manager
Average age3939
Gender ratioMale, 66.0% Female, 34.0%Male, 60.5% Female, 39.5%
Race ratioBlack 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 Percentage10%10%

Differences between strategic development director and development manager duties and responsibilities

Strategic development director example responsibilities.

  • Lead strategic and creative direction with well-define, measurable ROI outcomes and integrate marketing services to deliver greater results.
  • Lead centralized, electronic referral center coordinating post-acute service needs of patients discharging from multiple acute facilities in Arizona region.
  • Establish WW economics of new product design prospects - ROI, margin targets, pricing / cost models.
  • Provide mergers and acquisitions due diligence/modeling analysis/management/valuation support.
  • Provide mergers and acquisitions due diligence/modeling analysis/management/valuation support.

Development manager example responsibilities.

  • Thank and recognize donors in an appropriate and timely manner and manage and maintain donor database including updating and managing files.
  • Utilize BizTalk to automate HIPAA standard transactions.
  • Manage the integration of CTIOS to the CRM application.
  • Lead design/development of prototyping of new software for relate revenue streams.
  • Lead the global investment banking development team and corporate SOX application.
  • Manage and chair product design and development using custom J2EE and MVC framework.
  • Show more

Strategic development director vs development manager skills

Common strategic development director skills
  • Strategic Development, 26%
  • Business Development, 16%
  • RFP, 6%
  • Business Relationships, 6%
  • Sales Strategy, 5%
  • Strategic Plan, 4%
Common development manager skills
  • Project Management, 7%
  • Customer Service, 6%
  • Patients, 6%
  • Java, 5%
  • Database, 5%
  • Professional Development, 4%

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