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What does a chief electrical engineer do?

Updated January 8, 2025
7 min read
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Chief electrical engineer responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real chief electrical engineer resumes:

  • Manage and perform verification activities to insure device meet all safety and EMC requirements.
  • Develop, debug PLC programs.
  • Develop spreadsheets for calculating performance, power consumption, HVAC and lighting.
  • Perform project relate tasks including drawings, component specifications, control algorithms, PLC and HMI programs.
  • Design and draw automation control panels utilizing Autocad.
  • Develop a system software using LabView to emulate system operation to provide production the capability to build and troubleshoot units.
  • Implement software development process, QA process, incorporate product reliability starting from design to release.
  • Develop a system software using LabView to emulate system operation to provide production the capability to build and troubleshoot units.

Chief electrical engineer skills and personality traits

We calculated that 12% of Chief Electrical Engineers are proficient in OSHA, Control Systems, and HVAC. They’re also known for soft skills such as Concentration, Initiative, and Math skills.

We break down the percentage of Chief Electrical Engineers that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • OSHA, 12%

    Developed electrical standards/practices, vendor certification, Created and implemented customer machine OSHA safety and training.

  • Control Systems, 10%

    Design and supervise the manufacture of Electrical Control Systems for Automated Bottling Machinery and Automated Transmission test equipment.

  • HVAC, 9%

    Managed the commands efforts in providing over 216 hours of Mobile Electric Power and HVAC.

  • CAD, 8%

    Completed CAD drawings required for harness and cable fabrication, both for ATA and for customers.

  • Electrical Design, 7%

    Developed electrical design standard program for quality control.

  • RF, 7%

    Developed RF products based on low to high level implementation specifications based on customer or requests or company design modification requirements.

"osha," "control systems," and "hvac" are among the most common skills that chief electrical engineers use at work. You can find even more chief electrical engineer responsibilities below, including:

Concentration. The most essential soft skill for a chief electrical engineer to carry out their responsibilities is concentration. This skill is important for the role because "electrical and electronics engineers design and develop complex electrical systems and electronic components and products." Additionally, a chief electrical engineer resume shows how their duties depend on concentration: "designed system monitor systems using abb plc's and including data concentration and climatecontrols. "

Initiative. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling chief electrical engineer duties is initiative. The role rewards competence in this skill because "electrical and electronics engineers must apply their knowledge to new tasks in every project they undertake." According to a chief electrical engineer resume, here's how chief electrical engineers can utilize initiative in their job responsibilities: "develop cost reduction strategies through innovation in system designs and engineering, applying value engineering, constructability and task analysis initiatives. "

Math skills. chief electrical engineers are also known for math skills, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to chief electrical engineer responsibilities, because "electrical and electronics engineers must use the principles of calculus and other advanced math in order to analyze, design, and troubleshoot equipment." A chief electrical engineer resume example shows how math skills is used in the workplace: "performed advanced engineering analysis and programming utilizing cadence pspice, multisim, mentor graphics hyperlynx, mathcad and ms excel. "

Speaking skills. A big part of what chief electrical engineers do relies on "speaking skills." You can see how essential it is to chief electrical engineer responsibilities because "electrical and electronics engineers work closely with other engineers and technicians." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical chief electrical engineer tasks: "presented system operation and technical details at us army design reviews. "

Writing skills. Another crucial skill for a chief electrical engineer to carry out their responsibilities is "writing skills." A big part of what chief electrical engineers relies on this skill, since "electrical and electronics engineers develop technical publications related to equipment they develop, including maintenance manuals, operation manuals, parts lists, product proposals, and design methods documents." How this skill relates to chief electrical engineer duties can be seen in an example from a chief electrical engineer resume snippet: "created schematics and pcb layouts for each design, as well as writing all the microcontroller code. "

See the full list of chief electrical engineer skills

The three companies that hire the most chief electrical engineers are:

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Compare different chief electrical engineers

Chief electrical engineer vs. System design engineer

A system design engineer is an individual who participates in system design engineering and resolves manufacturing and service problems. System design engineers are required to collaborate with the system design team to research emerging technologies and develop new capabilities. They create design layouts by utilizing the use of CAD software such as AutoCad as well as supervise a group of CAD technicians. System design engineers must also provide customer service in the field and deliver individualized problem solving and system design support

The annual salary of system design engineers is $13,468 higher than the average salary of chief electrical engineers.While their salaries may differ, the common ground between chief electrical engineers and system design engineers are a few of the skills required in each roleacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities. In both careers, employee duties involve skills like control systems, hvac, and cad.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between chief electrical engineers and system design engineer. For instance, chief electrical engineer responsibilities require skills such as "osha," "electrical design," "ac," and "plumbing." Whereas a system design engineer is skilled in "system design," "architecture," "matlab," and "c++." This is part of what separates the two careers.

System design engineers earn the highest salaries when working in the automotive industry, with an average yearly salary of $116,222. On the other hand, chief electrical engineers are paid more in the transportation industry with an average salary of $90,496.The education levels that system design engineers earn slightly differ from chief electrical engineers. In particular, system design engineers are 1.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a chief electrical engineer. Additionally, they're 1.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Chief electrical engineer vs. Instrumentation & control engineer

An instrumentation and control engineer is responsible for installing and designing technical components for engineering systems that would support production and manufacturing processes. Instrumentation and control engineers inspect control systems, modify features and infrastructure, configure controllers, and run multiple quality checks to ensure stability and optimal performance. They must have excellent communication and technical skills, especially in developing system codes and analyzing programming languages to serve control functions and development. An instrumentation and control engineer also resolves system issues and write resolution reports for reference.

A career as a instrumentation & control engineer brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a chief electrical engineer. In fact, instrumentation & control engineers salary is $1,772 lower than the salary of chief electrical engineers per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Chief electrical engineers and instrumentation & control engineers both require similar skills like "hvac," "ac," and "electrical equipment" to carry out their responsibilities.

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, chief electrical engineer responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "osha," "control systems," "cad," and "electrical design." Meanwhile, an instrumentation & control engineer has duties that require skills in areas such as "hmi," "p id," "process control," and "dcs." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Instrumentation & control engineers earn a lower average salary than chief electrical engineers. But instrumentation & control engineers earn the highest pay in the energy industry, with an average salary of $98,177. Additionally, chief electrical engineers earn the highest salaries in the transportation with average pay of $90,496 annually.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Instrumentation & control engineers tend to reach similar levels of education than chief electrical engineers. In fact, they're 4.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Chief electrical engineer vs. Engineer

Engineers are highly trained professionals who determine the feasibility of various projects, usually related to the construction industry. They are considered experts in mathematics and science, two disciplines that they need to use in designing and coming up with plans for projects. They should also be well-versed in different construction or industrial materials, and they ensure that appropriate materials are used for the project. They also ensure that the projects meet the requirements of the groups that hired them. They create spaces that would both address the needs of the end-users and the industry standards. They also ensure that the projects they make would stand the test of time.

On average, engineers earn lower salaries than chief electrical engineers, with a $2,159 difference per year.By looking over several chief electrical engineers and engineers resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "control systems," "hvac," and "cad." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, chief electrical engineers are more likely to have skills like "osha," "electrical design," "ac," and "electrical equipment." But a engineer is more likely to have skills like "python," "cloud," "c++," and "c #."

Engineers earn the highest salary when working in the automotive industry, where they receive an average salary of $97,672. Comparatively, chief electrical engineers have the highest earning potential in the transportation industry, with an average salary of $90,496.When it comes to education, engineers tend to earn similar degree levels compared to chief electrical engineers. In fact, they're 1.3% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 1.3% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Chief electrical engineer vs. Instrumentation engineer

An instrumentation engineer specializes in designing and developing equipment to optimize business processes. Their responsibilities revolve around performing research and analysis to identify the needs of a company, coordinating with different departments to gather data, devising strategies to create new processes, and preparing reports and presentations for the executives. An instrumentation engineer mostly performs installations and repairs; they also conduct regular maintenance to ensure the efficiency of facilities. Furthermore, they must answer inquiries and resolve issues and concerns, all in adherence to the company's policies and regulations.

Instrumentation engineers tend to earn a lower pay than chief electrical engineers by an average of $5,453 per year.While both chief electrical engineers and instrumentation engineers complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like control systems, hvac, and cad, the two careers vary in some skills.

Even though a few skill sets overlap between chief electrical engineers and instrumentation engineers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a chief electrical engineer might have more use for skills like "osha," "electrical design," "rf," and "ac." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of instrumentation engineers require skills like "analyzers," "troubleshoot," "instrumentation systems," and "technical support. "

The government industry tends to pay the highest salaries for instrumentation engineers, with average annual pay of $80,269. Comparatively, the highest chief electrical engineer annual salary comes from the transportation industry.The average resume of instrumentation engineers showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to chief electrical engineers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 4.9% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.2%.

Types of chief electrical engineer

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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