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The differences between strategic planners and planners can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a strategic planner, becoming a planner takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a strategic planner has an average salary of $88,718, which is higher than the $63,161 average annual salary of a planner.
The top three skills for a strategic planner include project management, DOD and logistics. The most important skills for a planner are customer service, exceptional client, and logistics.
| Strategic Planner | Planner | |
| Yearly salary | $88,718 | $63,161 |
| Hourly rate | $42.65 | $30.37 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 24,228 | 15,269 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 39 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 10 | 2 |
Strategic planners are professionals who participate in the planning of business strategy for medium or large corporations as well as assess their operational and strategic performance. These planners are required to analyze financial and budget reports so that they can make strategic recommendations based on the financial health of the company. Together with the market researchers, these planners must conduct market research so that they can identify threats and opportunities. Strategic planners must also educate their senior executives in making effective decisions by constructing forecasts and analytical models.
As the name entails, planners assist in creating a broad vision for a community. They conduct research, design, and advanced programs. Some of them focus on a few roles, such as planning transportation, while some will most likely work at different planning types throughout their profession. They develop a plan through data analysis, determine the project's goals or the community, and form a specific vision. They also identify the strategies to help the city realized its goals and vision.
Strategic planners and planners have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Strategic Planner | Planner | |
| Average salary | $88,718 | $63,161 |
| Salary range | Between $62,000 And $126,000 | Between $45,000 And $88,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Rhode Island | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a strategic planner and a planner in terms of educational background:
| Strategic Planner | Planner | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between strategic planners' and planners' demographics:
| Strategic Planner | Planner | |
| Average age | 39 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 62.9% Female, 37.1% | Male, 54.4% Female, 45.6% |
| 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, 4.9% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 9.6% White, 67.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 13% |