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What does a director of quality & engineering do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read

A director of quality and engineering spearheads and oversees the overall quality and engineering operations of a company. They have the responsibility to set goals and budgets, establish product roadmaps and guidelines, coordinate managers, and build positive relationships with business partners. They must also address issues and concerns, resolving them promptly and efficiently. Moreover, as a director of quality and engineering, they must enforce quality standards and company policies to ensure efficient results and smooth workflow.

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Director of quality & engineering responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real director of quality & engineering resumes:

  • Define, develop and implement a manage cloud services architecture approach that is based on modular processes and continual integration/deployment interactions.
  • Perform 3rd party audits for GMP and ISO on vendors and other companies doing business with Kodak.
  • Serve as team leader for the ISO implementation group that drive all the preparations for qualification.
  • Work as a billable resource for a number of high-name clients providing QA, automation, and software development consultative services.
  • Coordinate QA efforts that result in consistent on-time delivery of new products and regularly schedule maintenance releases.
  • Define technology architecture and integrate it into the manufacturing infrastructure to improve production processes across all product lines.
  • Develop and implement a process that reviews supplier performance data to determine highest impact suppliers to Toyota and identify systematic problems.
  • Develop and implement a process that reviews supplier performance data to determine highest impact suppliers to Toyota and identify systematic problems.

Director of quality & engineering skills and personality traits

We calculated that 11% of Directors Of Quality & Engineering are proficient in Quality Engineering, Continuous Improvement, and Product Quality. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Detail oriented.

We break down the percentage of Directors Of Quality & Engineering that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Quality Engineering, 11%

    Established Quality Engineering group included test automation tool selection and implementation, quality documentation and release management process.

  • Continuous Improvement, 7%

    Developed and led supplier certification process, supplier development, and continuous improvement.

  • Product Quality, 6%

    Implemented processes for monitoring and improving Customer Quality, Product Quality and Reliability and yields.

  • QA, 5%

    Coordinated QA efforts that resulted in consistent on-time delivery of new products and regularly scheduled maintenance releases.

  • Java, 5%

    Planned and scheduled application testing scripts and release deployment using LoadRunner on Java/J2EE cash management environment..

  • Medical Devices, 4%

    Prepared and submitted applications to Health Canada for marketing of Medical Devices.

Common skills that a director of quality & engineering uses to do their job include "quality engineering," "continuous improvement," and "product quality." You can find details on the most important director of quality & engineering responsibilities below.

Analytical skills. The most essential soft skill for a director of quality & engineering to carry out their responsibilities is analytical skills. This skill is important for the role because "architectural and engineering managers evaluate information to solve problems." Additionally, a director of quality & engineering resume shows how their duties depend on analytical skills: "supported business development by providing data and insight into ees' quality system to meet customers' requirements on new projects. "

Communication skills. Many director of quality & engineering duties rely on communication skills. "architectural and engineering managers must effectively convey information and expectations related to projects.," so a director of quality & engineering will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways director of quality & engineering responsibilities rely on communication skills: "created communication strategy for providing monthly updates to management on quality system status and improvements. "

Organizational skills. A big part of what directors of quality & engineering do relies on "organizational skills." You can see how essential it is to director of quality & engineering responsibilities because "architectural and engineering managers keep track of many workers, schedules, and budgets simultaneously." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical director of quality & engineering tasks: "introduced new tools, technologies, and process initiatives; resulting in improved product quality and increased individual and organizational productivity. "

Math skills. Another common skill required for director of quality & engineering responsibilities is "math skills." This skill comes up in the duties of directors of quality & engineering all the time, as "architectural and engineering managers use calculus and other mathematics to develop new products and processes." An excerpt from a real director of quality & engineering resume shows how this skill is central to what a director of quality & engineering does: "trained 20 six sigma green belts in the use of applied statistics to design and manufacture new products. "

All director of quality & engineering skills

Choose from 10+ customizable director of quality & engineering resume templates

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Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume
Director Of Quality & Engineering Resume

Compare different directors of quality & engineering

Director of quality & engineering vs. Quality assurance director

The job of a quality assurance (QA) director is to oversee all QA functions across the company. Your duties typically include working closely with other department heads to deliver high-quality products on time, hiring managers and analysts, and establishing and maintaining a quality system to make sure that company guidelines and regulatory standards are met. Additionally, you will be responsible for ensuring quality by monitoring, appraising job results, and planning. You are also expected to maintain technical and professional knowledge by reviewing professional publications, participating in professional associations, and attending workshops.

We looked at the average director of quality & engineering salary and compared it with the wages of a quality assurance director. Generally speaking, quality assurance directors are paid $46 higher than directors of quality & engineering per year.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both director of quality & engineering and quality assurance director positions are skilled in continuous improvement, product quality, and medical devices.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between directors of quality & engineering and quality assurance director. For instance, director of quality & engineering responsibilities require skills such as "quality engineering," "qa," "java," and "management system." Whereas a quality assurance director is skilled in "quality standards," "oversight," "scrum," and "patients." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Quality assurance directors tend to make the most money working in the professional industry, where they earn an average salary of $161,774. In contrast, directors of quality & engineering make the biggest average salary, $127,614, in the technology industry.quality assurance directors tend to reach similar levels of education than directors of quality & engineering. In fact, quality assurance directors are 2.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.6% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.

Director of quality & engineering vs. Research and development manager

A research and development manager is responsible for supervising project development procedures to support business operations and identify business opportunities that would pave the way for more revenue resources and profits. Research and development managers monitor the production plans from the conceptualization to the final outputs, inspecting inconsistencies and flaws in every phase and revising strategies as needed to achieve the required specifications and requirements. They delegate tasks to the staff, oversee progress, and conduct research and development programs to maximize productivity and team efforts.

Research and development manager positions earn lower pay than director of quality & engineering roles. They earn a $23,384 lower salary than directors of quality & engineering per year.A few skills overlap for directors of quality & engineering and research and development managers. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "product quality," "qa," and "java. "

Each career also uses different skills, according to real director of quality & engineering resumes. While director of quality & engineering responsibilities can utilize skills like "quality engineering," "continuous improvement," "medical devices," and "quality system," research and development managers use skills like "customer service," "project management," "patients," and "c++."

Research and development managers may earn a lower salary than directors of quality & engineering, but research and development managers earn the most pay in the professional industry with an average salary of $143,083. On the other hand, directors of quality & engineering receive higher pay in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $127,614.research and development managers earn similar levels of education than directors of quality & engineering in general. They're 1.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Director of quality & engineering vs. Design manager

A design manager is responsible for creating graphic and digital designs, following clients' specifications, and managing project deliverables efficiently. Design managers work closely with the marketing and public relations department, developing strategies to promote the brand to the target audience. They coordinate with the creative team and present the design ideas to the management, ask for final approval, perform revisions as needed, and follow the budget goals. A design manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills to handle the design team's concerns and needs.

On average, design managers earn lower salaries than directors of quality & engineering, with a $38,254 difference per year.directors of quality & engineering and design managers both have job responsibilities that require similar skill sets. These similarities include skills such as "qa," "iso," and "product development," but they differ when it comes to other required skills.

Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from director of quality & engineering resumes include skills like "quality engineering," "continuous improvement," "product quality," and "java," whereas a design manager is more likely to list skills in "sketch," "project management," "visualization," and "user experience. "

Design managers earn the best pay in the technology industry, where they command an average salary of $121,279. Directors of quality & engineering earn the highest pay from the technology industry, with an average salary of $127,614.Most design managers achieve a lower degree level compared to directors of quality & engineering. For example, they're 10.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Director of quality & engineering vs. Engineering program manager

As an engineering program manager in the world of technology, it is their main responsibility to lead the development of important modules of new technology such as display, camera, touch ID, etc. It is their job to ensure that modules are correctly built according to specifications and given timeline. They drive day-to-day engineering related activities at the vendor's factory to meet overall program ideas. They are knowledgeable of the hardware process development and other features like display or camera design.

Engineering program managers tend to earn a lower pay than directors of quality & engineering by an average of $18,287 per year.According to resumes from directors of quality & engineering and engineering program managers, some of the skills necessary to complete the responsibilities of each role are similar. These skills include "continuous improvement," "product quality," and "qa. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between directors of quality & engineering and engineering program managers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a director of quality & engineering might have more use for skills like "quality engineering," "medical devices," "fda," and "quality system." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of engineering program managers require skills like "project management," "program management," "software development," and "team coordination. "

Engineering program managers enjoy the best pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $127,984. For comparison, directors of quality & engineering earn the highest salary in the technology industry.In general, engineering program managers hold similar degree levels compared to directors of quality & engineering. Engineering program managers are 0.9% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 0.0% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Types of director of quality & engineering

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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