I need specifications on the differences between a manager, supervisor, lead, vice president senior vice pres

Question

I am trying to develop job descriptions for my very unique small business. I don't want to use the canned version from something like job genie. What are the real diffinitive differences between these different levels

Answer 1

Building up:

Leads are generally in multi incumbent jobs (think accountants, payroll clerks, etc.), but they are the most experienced, senior individuals who give advice/counsel to the least experienced. They don't actually hire/fire/evaluate performance of others--but they are the "go to" person lots of time for the history, the context and some routine training.

Supervisors focus primarily internally on other staff--and yes they hire/fire/evaluate performance of other people.

Managers oversee the whole dept (say Accounts Payable)-- both internally and extnerally. Where superviosrs are primarily taking care of the people aspects, managers oversee supervisors and take care of the BUSINESS aspects as well.

Vice Presidents oversee functions (related dpeartments)....think FINANCE, which has Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Financial Planning, Tax, etc.

Senior Vice Presidents oversee multiple functions--Sr Vice President Administration may oversee human resources, marketing, communication

Answer 2

These are definitions from my experiences, not from any dictionary.

A lead would be the lowest position you have listed. The lead would be the highest qualified or most senior employee in the job role.

A supervisor is a liason between management and the employees. While they delegate responsibilities within their group, they usually have no real power to make decisions.

A manager is in charge of the entire department. They would have the authority to make decisions that affect the company (within their department only), as well as hire and fire employees.

A vice president is an officer of the company. They have the authority to sign legal documents on behalf of the company, usually after approval from the president or board. A senior vice president, in my experiences, is usually different in title only, indicating they have been with the company longer than the other VPs.

Hope this helps you.

Answer 3

Wow I think this is a pretty tough question. Each and every company could have different ideas on this. IMHO, I would have to say that manager, supervisor and lead can all represent the same level but I could be wrong on that. Like I said, I believe it's all relative to whatever the business is.