By Shannon Abram, Relationship Manager at The Community Roundtable.
It’s the time of year when many community professionals are making career resolutions – whether to strengthen their current role in their organization or take that next step on the career ladder. With that in mind, it seems like a good time to surface more of the great and useful data from the Community Manager Salary Survey that illustrate the career path of community professionals. So in the coming weeks, we are going to use Wednesday as our day for sharing statistics from our research.
Director of Community Profile from the CMSS 2014
Today, we begin with some information on Directors of Community – once a rare unicorn indeed, but a role now popping up more and more in our community travels. Directors of Community typically own community programs at their organizations, and are responsible for community strategy, governance, team management and budgets. Not every community has a director – instead, a functional executive often takes on these responsibilities. But the Director of Community role is becoming common (as well as some VP of Community roles) in mature communities, in large organizations and in organizations where the community program is central to the business model.
Through our research in the Community Manager Salary Survey 2014 we found that true to the title Directors of Community have more community and more general work experience than the average Community Manager or Community Strategist. And there are signs that they are being treated (as they should be) as members of management – with higher salaries and bonuses as part of their compensation – in fact, 65% of Directors of Community receive a bonus.
That high percentage is good news for the Directors, and it also sends a signal that organizations are developing an appreciation for the demonstrable value that community can provide.
Does your organization have a Director of Community as part of your community team? Are you a Director of Community yourself? We’d love to hear your perspective on the challenges you face in your role, the way you demonstrate value – and the information and research that would be most helpful to support you in demonstrating and getting compensated for your value.
Click the link to explore the full Community Manager Salary Survey 2014, now available from The Community Roundtable.
Are you a Director of Community? Build the connections and skills that can move you forward in your own career. TheCR Network provides dozens of professional development opportunities and opens doors to connect you with one of the largest networks of experienced community managers and directors in the world. Join us!
