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The differences between unit leaders and program leads can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a unit leader and a program lead. Additionally, a program lead has an average salary of $100,727, which is higher than the $42,921 average annual salary of a unit leader.
The top three skills for a unit leader include conflict resolution, customer service and cash handling. The most important skills for a program lead are project management, HR, and work ethic.
| Unit Leader | Program Lead | |
| Yearly salary | $42,921 | $100,727 |
| Hourly rate | $20.64 | $48.43 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 63,952 | 61,632 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
A unit leader is responsible for managing logistics and route efficiency to increase territory profits. Responsibilities include leading operational projects in manufacturing, coordinating daily cash reconciliation, and reviewing analytical reports before submission to QA. Additionally, you will be responsible for compiling reports for management and developing department communication strategies. As a unit leader, you will be assessing clients for a variety of entitlement programs and performing vendor management and administrative duties related to facilitation, special projects, and web-based training.
A program lead is responsible for managing a business program's operation from its conceptualization to implementation. Program leads must have excellent communication and researching skills to monitor current industry trends, adjusting program techniques and strategies to meet society's demands. They have a clear understanding of the organization's long-term goals and outline plans to define those objectives, bringing new programs to light following clients' specifications that would help the business grow revenues, maintain customer satisfaction, and keep its good reputation, and achieve profitability goals.
Unit leaders and program leads have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Unit Leader | Program Lead | |
| Average salary | $42,921 | $100,727 |
| Salary range | Between $18,000 And $101,000 | Between $59,000 And $171,000 |
| Highest paying City | Schenectady, NY | Washington, DC |
| Highest paying state | New York | New York |
| Best paying company | Genentech | Netflix |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a unit leader and a program lead in terms of educational background:
| Unit Leader | Program Lead | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 61% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between unit leaders' and program leads' demographics:
| Unit Leader | Program Lead | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 41.8% Female, 58.2% | Male, 40.9% Female, 59.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 12.0% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 5.1% White, 61.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 10.0% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 15.5% Asian, 5.1% White, 62.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |