Whilst it is common for the terms 'Proprietor' and 'Director' to be used interchangeably, technically they are statutory terms and their use is strictly governed by the Companies Act and other similar legislation.
A Proprietor is a person who owns a Proprietorship. This is the simplest and easiest form of business registration. In this case, there can only be one owner. Usually, they will have a trading name on the basis of which they will acquire the business PAN card, service or sales tax registration etc...
A Director is a person who controls a company - whether private or public limited. They have signed a Memorandum of Directorship, have stringent statutory obligations placed upon them. And, remember, a company MUST have at least 2 Directors.
So, the easiest test re: whether to call your boss a Director or Proprietor is this: If his business is a Private Limited company, then he/she is a Director. If it is a single-person owned entity with a trading name attached, then he/she is a Proprietor.
And, to bring further clarity, if your boss is in a registered partnership, and is performing most of the business' management work, then he/she is a Managing Partner.
Urvashi Dixit (urvashi.vansh10@gmail.com)
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Difference between propriter &manager
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Chairman is a head of a group of company's. but the Managing director is a head of a single organisation.
A promoter is a founder of a company. He may or may not be the director of the company. If the promoter is a director of the company as well, then he is subject to receiving of dividends as per his proportion of shareholding in the company.
A non-executive director sits on the board of directors however is not considered to be an executive. They are not involved with day to day operations and decisions. In contrast, an independent director is a director who holds responsibilities and was brought in as a consultant from the outside.