Director, hardware engineering vs engineering program manager

The differences between directors, hardware engineering and engineering program managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes More than 10 years to become both a director, hardware engineering and an engineering program manager. Additionally, a director, hardware engineering has an average salary of $182,954, which is higher than the $122,604 average annual salary of an engineering program manager.

The top three skills for a director, hardware engineering include RF, product development and hardware development. The most important skills for an engineering program manager are project management, program management, and software development.

Director, hardware engineering vs engineering program manager overview

	Director, Hardware Engineering	Engineering Program Manager
Yearly salary	$182,954	$122,604
Hourly rate	$87.96	$58.94
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	63,781	148,543
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Average age	48	48
Years of experience	-	-

Director, hardware engineering vs engineering program manager salary

Directors, hardware engineering and engineering program managers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Director, Hardware Engineering	Engineering Program Manager
Average salary	$182,954	$122,604
Salary range	Between $128,000 And $260,000	Between $95,000 And $157,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Alaska	California
Best paying company	NVIDIA	Meta
Best paying industry	Start-up	Technology

Differences between director, hardware engineering and engineering program manager education

There are a few differences between a director, hardware engineering and an engineering program manager in terms of educational background:

	Director, Hardware Engineering	Engineering Program Manager
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 71%	Bachelor's Degree, 69%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Mechanical Engineering
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Director, hardware engineering vs engineering program manager demographics

Here are the differences between directors, hardware engineering' and engineering program managers' demographics:

	Director, Hardware Engineering	Engineering Program Manager
Average age	48	48
Gender ratio	Male, 92.9% Female, 7.1%	Male, 83.5% Female, 16.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 2.8% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 7.7% Asian, 17.9% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 14.0% White, 69.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between director, hardware engineering and engineering program manager duties and responsibilities

Director, hardware engineering example responsibilities.

Lead contract purchasing, PCB fabrication, contract board assembly, and ICT test fixture fabrication.
Select and manage contract resources for industrial design, mechanical design and fabrication, and PCB layout.
Manage design, tooling, equipment implementations and process improvements for foundry/machining metalworking manufacturer of automotive OEM products.
Hire to build world-class hardware development team including RF engineers.
Train subordinates to use FEA.
Involve in the design of a chip tray which incorporates RF antennas.

Engineering program manager example responsibilities.

Manage & assist component qualification through PPAP approval process.
Manage prototyping, optics, and tooling for Harley-Davidson aftermarket turn signal and brake lenses.
Manage several projects simultaneously, with excellent track record for ensuring team on-time IP delivery.
Manage committees and task forces ensuring synchronization of CNC training and skills need to promote successful CNC careers.
Work closely with PMO to understand product portfolio needs and manage internal and external resources to meet those goals.
Lead IPT meetings to provide status, address programmatic and customer concerns, assign priorities, assess risk and identifyopportunities.

Director, hardware engineering vs engineering program manager skills

Common director, hardware engineering skills

RF, 9%
Product Development, 8%
Hardware Development, 7%
Firmware, 6%
Mechanical Engineering, 5%
Hardware Products, 5%

Common engineering program manager skills

Project Management, 15%
Program Management, 14%
Software Development, 6%
Scrum, 4%
Risk Management, 3%
Continuous Improvement, 3%

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Director, Hardware Engineering
Director, Hardware Engineering vs Engineering Program Manager

Updated January 8, 2025

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