Management · Holland code ESC

Social and Community Service Managers

Plan, direct, or coordinate the activities of a social service program or community outreach organization. Oversee the program or organization's budget and policies regarding participant involvement, program requirements, and benefits. Work may involve directing social workers, counselors, or probation officers.

Also called: Child Welfare Services Director, Social Services Director, Transitional Care Director, Vocational Rehabilitation Administrator, Adoption Services Manager, Children's Service Supervisor, Clinical Services Director, Community Services Director.

O*NET 11-9151.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $80,390; Middle half earn $64,290 to $103,200. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: Bachelor's Degree; 50% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 4 of 5; Considerable preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.
US employment outlook, 2024 to 2034: +6% · Faster than average; 219,800 jobs in 2024, projected 233,900. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, which groups this with similar roles as "Social and community service managers".

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Establish and oversee administrative procedures to meet objectives set by boards of directors or senior management.
Direct activities of professional and technical staff members and volunteers.
Evaluate the work of staff and volunteers to ensure that programs are of appropriate quality and that resources are used effectively.
Participate in the determination of organizational policies regarding such issues as participant eligibility, program requirements, and program benefits.
Prepare and maintain records and reports, such as budgets, personnel records, or training manuals.
Provide direct service and support to individuals or clients, such as handling a referral for child advocacy issues, conducting a needs evaluation, or resolving complaints.
Establish and maintain relationships with other agencies and organizations in community to meet community needs and to ensure that services are not duplicated.
Recruit, interview, and hire or sign up volunteers and staff.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Active Listening3.9 / 5
Critical Thinking3.9 / 5
Active Learning3.9 / 5
Monitoring3.9 / 5
Reading Comprehension3.8 / 5
Writing3.8 / 5

Knowledge areas

Customer and Personal Service4.6 / 5
Administration and Management4.4 / 5
English Language4.3 / 5
Psychology4.1 / 5
Education and Training3.9 / 5
Personnel and Human Resources3.7 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic0
Investigative19
Artistic24
Social74
Enterprising100
Conventional54

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

social security administrator · DE Beauftragter für die soziale Sicherheit/Beauftragte für die soziale Sicherheit · FR administrateur sécurité sociale/administratrice sécurité sociale
social services manager · DE Manager im Bereich soziale Dienste/Managerin im Bereich soziale Dienste · FR responsable de service social
public housing manager · DE Manager für öffentlichen und sozialen Wohnungsbau/Managerin für öffentlichen und sozialen Wohnungsbau · FR directeur d'organisme d'habitations à loyer modéré/directrice d'organisme d'habitations à loyer modéré
youth centre manager · DE Jugendzentrumsleiter/Jugendzentrumsleiterin · FR directeur de maison des jeunes/directrice de maison des jeunes
youth programme director · DE Direktor eines Jugendprogramms/Direktorin eines Jugendprogramms · FR coordonnateur de programmes pour les jeunes/coordinatrice de programmes pour les jeunes
cultural policy officer · DE Referent für Kultur/Referentin für Kultur · FR chargé de mission en développement culturel/chargée de mission en développement culturel

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Social workers (2461)139,800 employed
Probation officers (2462)11,900 employed
Youth work professionals (2464)10,200 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Managers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Managers, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€96,629
Italy	€96,052
Germany	€90,192
Austria	€82,936
Netherlands	€69,857
Sweden	€60,369
France	€58,740
Ireland	€55,854
Spain	€54,121
Portugal	€39,189
Poland	€19,596

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.16. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (11-9151).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

Take the career interests test