Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between unit managers and operations program managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a unit manager and an operations program manager. Additionally, an operations program manager has an average salary of $111,378, which is higher than the $60,561 average annual salary of a unit manager.
The top three skills for a unit manager include quality care, patients and federal regulations. The most important skills for an operations program manager are project management, program management, and continuous improvement.
| Unit Manager | Operations Program Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $60,561 | $111,378 |
| Hourly rate | $29.12 | $53.55 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 366,932 | 319,602 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 52% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
Unit managers are responsible for managing the nursing unit. They primarily supervise the daily care of patients and ensure quality patient care. Usually, they perform tasks like evaluating staff performance, conducting orientation for new staff, and training new members. Also, they manage schedules, minimize expenditures, and enforce health as well as safety regulations. Unit managers are registered nursing professionals with an undergraduate or graduate degree. They are honest, adaptable, and analytical professionals with strong management and leadership skills and relevant experience in nursing and patient assessment.
The role of operations program managers is to help improve organizational efficiency, particularly in the areas of administrative, financial, and programmatic operations. Their key duties and responsibilities include overseeing the collection, analysis, and reporting of data, overseeing and leading teams to achieve business goals, and managing the development and execution of operational procedures. In addition, they are responsible for developing and monitoring dashboards to measure business health and assisting with planning, reporting, and budgeting.
Unit managers and operations program managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Unit Manager | Operations Program Manager | |
| Average salary | $60,561 | $111,378 |
| Salary range | Between $38,000 And $96,000 | Between $79,000 And $156,000 |
| Highest paying City | Los Angeles, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | Rhode Island |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | Mayo Clinic |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Technology |
There are a few differences between a unit manager and an operations program manager in terms of educational background:
| Unit Manager | Operations Program Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 52% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Nursing | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between unit managers' and operations program managers' demographics:
| Unit Manager | Operations Program Manager | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 42.4% Female, 57.6% | Male, 65.0% Female, 35.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 6.4% White, 67.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 6.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 6.3% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 10% |