Top Executives Held About 2.2 Million Jobs In 2006

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EMPLOYMENT

Top Executives held about 2.2 million jobs in 2006. Employment by detailed occupation was distributed as follows:

General and operations managers 1,720,000
Chief executives 402,000

JOB OUTLOOK

Employment of top executives—including chief executives, general and operations managers, and legislators—is expected to grow 2 percent from 2006 to 2016.

Employment of top executives is not as sensitive to growth in business as employment in many other occupations. As a business grows, the number of top executives changes little relative to the total number of employees. Therefore, top executives are not expected to experience as much employment growth as workers in the occupations they oversee.

Projected employment growth of top executives varies by industry. For example, employment growth is expected to grow faster than average in professional, scientific, and technical services and about as fast as the average in administrative and support services. However, employment is projected to decline in some manufacturing industries.

EDUCATION REQUIREMENT

Many top executives have a bachelor or graduate degree in business administration, liberal arts, or a more specialized discipline. Some top executives in the public sector have a background in public administration or liberal arts. Others might have a more specific background related to their jobs. For example, a health commissioner might have a graduate degree in health services administration or business administration.

EARNINGS

Median annual earnings of wage and salary general and operations managers in May 2006 were $85,230. The middle 50 percent earned between $58,230 and $128,580. Because the specific responsibilities of general and operations managers vary significantly within industries, earnings also tend to vary considerably. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of general and operations managers were:

Architectural, engineering, and related services $113,280
Management of companies and enterprises $105,130
Building equipment contractors $85,270
Depository credit intermediation $85,050
Local government $74,950

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