Chief Administrative Officer vs. COO

A chief administrative officer is an executive who oversees an organization's day-to-day operations, while a COO manages manufacturing, production sales, and personnel within the organization.

How To Become A Chief Administrative Officer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a chief administrative officer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

The Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) is in charge of managing the daily activities of a company, including human resources, budget tracking, and regulatory compliance. He/She oversees various departments, such as finance, HR, marketing, and sales. He/She compiles performance reports and reports directly to the chief executive officer and board of directors. The CAO is otherwise known as the Chief Operating Officer (COO). He/She works with other executives to develop strategies and policies to attain company goals.

To work as a CAO, you need either a bachelor's or a master's degree in business administration with proven work experience in a managerial role. You must be familiar with government regulations for businesses. The skillset for this role includes leadership, decision-making, teamwork, interpersonal, communication, and computer skills. You must be able to cope with stress. The average base pay for a chief administrative officer is $131,128. This ranges between $66,000 and $262,000.

ScoreChief Administrative OfficerUS Average

Salary

9.5

Avg. Salary $174,185

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

8.0

Growth Rate 7%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

2.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.48%

Asian 4.33%

Black or African American 10.11%

Hispanic or Latino 13.93%

Unknown 4.33%

White 66.81%

Gender

female 45.13%

male 54.87%

Age - 51

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 51

Stress Level

8.0

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

8.1

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

6.0

Work Life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a chief administrative officer

Explore chief administrative officer education requirements

Most common chief administrative officer degrees

Bachelor's

64.6 %

Master's

20.5 %

Associate

6.2 %

Start to develop specific chief administrative officer skills

Skills	Percentages
Human Resources	12.14%
Oversight	11.16%
Financial Management	8.13%
Payroll	5.21%
Risk Management	4.71%

Complete relevant chief administrative officer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New chief administrative officers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a chief administrative officer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real chief administrative officer resumes.

Research chief administrative officer duties and responsibilities

Manage and maintain database (FMP), sales sheets and track windows.
Manage and supervise the accounting and bookkeeping functions including budgeting, payroll and inventory.
Coordinate outside CPA review and year-end closing.
Develop systematic procedures for the effective use of the ERP system.

Get chief administrative officer experience

Generally, it takes 1-2 years to become a chief administrative officer. The most common roles before becoming a chief administrative officer include chief finance officer, vice president team lead and senior vice president.

Prepare your chief administrative officer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your chief administrative officer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a chief administrative officer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Chief Administrative Officer Resume templates

Build a professional Chief Administrative Officer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Chief Administrative Officer resume.

Apply for chief administrative officer jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a chief administrative officer job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

Average chief administrative officer salary

The average Chief Administrative Officer salary in the United States is $174,185 per year or $84 per hour. Chief administrative officer salaries range between $109,000 and $277,000 per year.

Average Chief Administrative Officer Salary

$174,185 Yearly

$83.74 hourly

How do chief administrative officers rate their job?

5/5

Based On 1 Ratings

5 Stars

4 Stars

3 Stars

2 Stars

1 Star

Chief Administrative Officer reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Jun 2022

Cons

Being restricted to working with a smaller group, than might need Leadership training and coaching.

5.0

A zippia user wrote a review on May 2019

Pros

I love to lead, in my everyday duties I have to deal with different type of situation which requires my deep knowledge to think before I decide.