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What does a director, product engineering do?

Updated January 8, 2025
8 min read

A director of product engineering usually works at manufacturing plants where they oversee production operations from planning to execution. They lead all initiatives, set goals and roadmaps, establish production schedules and guidelines, take part in recruitment procedures, coordinate internal and external parties, and build positive relationships with industry partners. They may also participate in developing new products, enhancing existing processes, and making significant business decisions. Moreover, a director, product engineering implements industry standards and company policies, creating new ones as necessary.

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Director, product engineering responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real director, product engineering resumes:

  • Negotiate contract, manage relationship with 3rd party supplier of T.38 Fax over IP technology.
  • Institute engineering processes to achieve ISO certification.
  • Manage and coordinate all hardware/software engineering, installation, and service of HVAC temperature control system projects.
  • Implement scheduling plan changes to allow QA to flow more smoothly.
  • Assist in the implementation of ISO [] including procedures, work instructions, and forms development.
  • Coordinate QA department, responsible for all qualification activities and ensure all products are qualify per JEDEC qualification standards.
  • Work with application and other infrastructure teams to facilitate application on-boarding, testing, move-ups, and user security infrastructure integration.
  • Conduct individual program and project reviews to assess overall project quality, health and compliance to PMO requirements.
  • Lead high-volume DOD operations for the manufacture of advance control/sensor/information systems and technologies.

Director, product engineering skills and personality traits

We calculated that 9% of Directors, Product Engineering are proficient in Cloud, Product Engineering, and Java. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Detail oriented.

We break down the percentage of Directors, Product Engineering that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Cloud, 9%

    Led Cloud Management Platform product development team through significant company growth and successful acquisition by CSC.

  • Product Engineering, 8%

    Directed product engineering activities, including new product development, and sustaining engineering, packaging engineering and engineering documentation.

  • Java, 7%

    Developed a Call Processing Feature Server based on J2EE and Java beans.

  • Continuous Improvement, 6%

    Established and implemented new engineering policies, administrative strategies, and continuous improvement initiatives.

  • Product Design, 5%

    Analyzed metrics from this methodology to drive quality improvements to contract manufacturers and product designs.

  • Product Development, 5%

    Initiated operations support strategy for worldwide geographic product deployment, including the implementation of a product development methodology and version control.

Most directors, product engineering use their skills in "cloud," "product engineering," and "java" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential director, product engineering responsibilities here:

Analytical skills. One of the key soft skills for a director, product engineering to have is analytical skills. You can see how this relates to what directors, product engineering do because "architectural and engineering managers evaluate information to solve problems." Additionally, a director, product engineering resume shows how directors, product engineering use analytical skills: "manage engineering software, software selections and maintenance including cad design packages, enterprise data management, erp system. "

Communication skills. Many director, product engineering duties rely on communication skills. "architectural and engineering managers must effectively convey information and expectations related to projects.," so a director, product engineering will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways director, product engineering responsibilities rely on communication skills: "create new processes for the engineering team to improve product quality and communication with other departments. "

Math skills. A big part of what directors, product engineering do relies on "math skills." You can see how essential it is to director, product engineering responsibilities because "architectural and engineering managers use calculus and other mathematics to develop new products and processes." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical director, product engineering tasks: "performed quantitative analysis of key process indicators to identify opportunities for process improvement. "

Organizational skills. Another common skill required for director, product engineering responsibilities is "organizational skills." This skill comes up in the duties of directors, product engineering all the time, as "architectural and engineering managers keep track of many workers, schedules, and budgets simultaneously." An excerpt from a real director, product engineering resume shows how this skill is central to what a director, product engineering does: "design and development process was specifically recognized as an organizational strength during the subsequent recertification audit. "

All director, product engineering skills

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Director, Product Engineering Resume

Compare different directors, product engineering

Director, product engineering vs. Research and development director

A research and development director spearheads and oversees the research and development initiatives and projects in a company. It is their duty to set goals and guidelines, establish timelines and budgets, direct and manage different departments, liaise with internal and external parties, gather and analyze data to implement solutions against problem areas, and utilize expertise in developing strategies to optimize company operations. Moreover, as a director, it is essential to lead and encourage the workforce to reach goals, all while promoting the company's policies and regulations, creating new ones as needed.

If we compare the average director, product engineering annual salary with that of a research and development director, we find that research and development directors typically earn a $40,898 lower salary than directors, product engineering make annually.While the two careers have a salary gap, they share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both director, product engineering and research and development director positions are skilled in java, product design, and product development.

There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, director, product engineering responsibilities require skills like "cloud," "product engineering," "continuous improvement," and "product management." Meanwhile a typical research and development director has skills in areas such as "project management," "oversight," "business development," and "strategic direction." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.

Research and development directors tend to make the most money working in the finance industry, where they earn an average salary of $167,250. In contrast, directors, product engineering make the biggest average salary, $179,542, in the technology industry.The education levels that research and development directors earn slightly differ from directors, product engineering. In particular, research and development directors are 2.3% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a director, product engineering. Additionally, they're 9.5% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Director, product engineering vs. Product management director

A Product Management Director is responsible for a business product planning as well as execution throughout the life cycle of the business. They create the product strategy and requirements, develop and execute tactical plans, and maintain product and market knowledge.

A career as a product management director brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of a director, product engineering. In fact, product management directors salary is $22,118 lower than the salary of directors, product engineering per year.A few skills overlap for directors, product engineering and product management directors. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "cloud," "java," and "product design. "

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, director, product engineering responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "product engineering," "continuous improvement," "aws," and "program management." Meanwhile, a product management director has duties that require skills in areas such as "analytics," "market research," "project management," and "digital transformation." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Product management directors may earn a lower salary than directors, product engineering, but product management directors earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $159,020. On the other hand, directors, product engineering receive higher pay in the technology industry, where they earn an average salary of $179,542.In general, product management directors achieve similar levels of education than directors, product engineering. They're 3.0% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 9.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Director, product 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.

An average research and development manager eans a lower salary compared to the average salary of directors, product engineering. The difference in salaries amounts to research and development managers earning a $61,335 lower average salary than directors, product engineering.By looking over several directors, product engineering and research and development managers resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "java," "product design," and "product development." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

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, product engineering resumes include skills like "cloud," "product engineering," "continuous improvement," and "software development," whereas a research and development manager is more likely to list skills in "customer service," "project management," "patients," and "c #. "

Research and development managers make a very good living in the professional industry with an average annual salary of $143,083. On the other hand, directors, product engineering are paid the highest salary in the technology industry, with average annual pay of $179,542.Most research and development managers achieve a similar degree level compared to directors, product engineering. For example, they're 2.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 4.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Director, product 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.

Design managers typically earn lower pay than directors, product engineering. On average, design managers earn a $76,205 lower salary per year.While both directors, product engineering and design managers complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like product design, product development, and r, the two careers vary in some skills.While some skills are required in each professionacirc;euro;trade;s responsibilities, there are some differences to note. "cloud," "product engineering," "java," and "continuous improvement" are skills that commonly show up on director, product engineering resumes. On the other hand, design managers use skills like sketch, project management, visualization, and user experience on their resumes.design managers enjoy the best pay in the technology industry, with an average salary of $121,279. For comparison, directors, product engineering earn the highest salary in the technology industry.The average resume of design managers showed that they earn lower levels of education compared to directors, product engineering. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 11.6% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 2.0%.

Types of director, product 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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