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The differences between strategic planning analysts and finance analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a strategic planning analyst and a finance analyst. Additionally, a strategic planning analyst has an average salary of $77,834, which is higher than the $69,887 average annual salary of a finance analyst.
The top three skills for a strategic planning analyst include powerpoint, data analysis and market research. The most important skills for a finance analyst are financial analysis, financial models, and financial data.
| Strategic Planning Analyst | Finance Analyst | |
| Yearly salary | $77,834 | $69,887 |
| Hourly rate | $37.42 | $33.60 |
| Growth rate | 11% | 9% |
| Number of jobs | 58,606 | 138,600 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 76% |
| Average age | 44 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A strategic planning analyst specializes in developing strategies to help businesses deal with organizational issues and reach their short and long-term goals. Among their responsibilities include understanding the company's needs and goals, performing extensive research and analysis to identify client and business opportunities, setting up guidelines and timelines, gathering and analyzing data to identify the strengths and weaknesses of current operations, and developing analytical models and forecasts. Moreover, a strategic planning analyst must recommend solutions while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
A finance analyst is responsible for evaluating a company's financial data and historical reports to assess investment opportunities and provide accurate financial statements in support of business strategies and company performance prediction. A financial analyst's duties also include suggesting recommendations to boost operations efficiency and grow revenues, researching the current market performance and economic trends to adjust budget goals as needed, and managing client portfolios. Finance analysts must have excellent critical and analytical thinking skills to identify the best actions for the company's profitability.
Strategic planning analysts and finance analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Strategic Planning Analyst | Finance Analyst | |
| Average salary | $77,834 | $69,887 |
| Salary range | Between $54,000 And $110,000 | Between $46,000 And $104,000 |
| Highest paying City | Arlington, VA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Virginia | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | Meta | The Citadel |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Finance |
There are a few differences between a strategic planning analyst and a finance analyst in terms of educational background:
| Strategic Planning Analyst | Finance Analyst | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 73% | Bachelor's Degree, 76% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between strategic planning analysts' and finance analysts' demographics:
| Strategic Planning Analyst | Finance Analyst | |
| Average age | 44 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 55.5% Female, 44.5% | Male, 56.2% Female, 43.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.4% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 8.4% Asian, 14.2% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 14.1% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 7% |