Hiring a training and development manager in Buffalo, NY

Employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area pay training and development managers a median of $130,240, with the middle half of the market between $103,540 and $158,440. Buffalo residents working in management occupations report a median of $60,856, which is 53% below what the metro pays for this role.

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What does a training and development manager earn here?

Place of work

What employers pay

Annual wages paid by employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
25th percentile	$103,540
Median	$130,240
75th percentile	$158,440

Half of training and development managers in this area earn between $103,540 and $158,440. A band set below $103,540 competes for the bottom quarter of the market.

Place of residence

What Buffalo residents earn

$60,856

Median earnings of Buffalo residents working in management occupations, 10,244 people. Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011. Where people live, not where they work, so it is not the same measurement as the wages beside it.

The 53% figure is not a pay gap. ACS counts the civilian employed population 16 and over, part-time and part-year work included; OEWS counts wage-and-salary jobs only. The two populations differ, so read this number against other cities rather than as a shortfall: the same definitional difference applies to every city equally, which is what makes a city-to-city reading sound.

The role pays well above the local residential norm, which usually means you can hire from inside Buffalo rather than competing for commuters.

What does the role actually involve?

Core tasks

Analyze training needs to develop new training programs or modify and improve existing programs.
Evaluate instructor performance and the effectiveness of training programs, providing recommendations for improvement.
Plan, develop, and provide training and staff development programs, using knowledge of the effectiveness of methods such as classroom training, demonstrations, on-the-job training, meetings, conferences, and workshops.
Confer with management and conduct surveys to identify training needs based on projected production processes, changes, and other factors.
Conduct orientation sessions and arrange on-the-job training for new hires.

O*NET 29.1, task statements for SOC 11-3131.

Tools and technologies in demand

Learning management system LMS, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop.

O*NET 29.1, flagged in demand or hot for this occupation. Useful as a screen, not as a checklist.

Is the talent actually in Buffalo?

This is a job zone four: considerable preparation needed occupation. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

That matters here, because 30.3% of Buffalo adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. That is a workable pool, but the search will reach beyond the city line. Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501.

The average Buffalo commute runs 19.9 minutes, which is roughly how far your catchment reaches before candidates start saying no. 9.6% already work from home, so a fully onsite requirement here is competing against that.

How often do these jobs turn over?

In Erie County, management of companies and enterprises employs 11,940 and turns over 5.5% a quarter, with 990 hires against 947 separations. Average earnings in that industry run $8,384 a month. Census LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators, 2024 Q1, NAICS 55.

That figure covers every occupation in the industry, not this role alone, so read it as the local churn rate rather than as a number about training and development managers. It still tells you what you are hiring into: a low-churn market, where people do not move often and passive candidates are the whole game.

What does the search cost?

The fee is set by the seniority of the role, never by salary and never by location. Across all six tiers it runs $6,240 to $54,340 per search. A contingency firm hiring at this role's median would bill roughly $26,048 to $39,072 on the first year salary alone.

One owner runs the search from market map to signed offer. Searches typically fill in 23 to 35 days, which is a typical window rather than a promise, and the replacement guarantee runs 45 days at 50% off.

Price this search

Eight questions about the role. Your tier range appears on screen.