How to hire a documentation engineer

How to hire a documentation engineer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step documentation engineer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a documentation engineer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new documentation engineer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a documentation engineer, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a documentation engineer to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a documentation engineer that fits the bill.

   This list shows salaries for various types of documentation engineers.

   Type of Documentation Engineer	Description	Hourly rate
   Documentation Engineer	Industrial engineers find ways to eliminate wastefulness in production processes. They devise efficient systems that integrate workers, machines, materials, information, and energy to make a product or provide a service.	$26-63
   Manufacturing Engineering Internship	A manufacturing engineering intern is responsible for assisting the manufacturing engineers on the plant's daily operations, analyzing the manufacturing process and procedures, and recommending strategic solutions to maximize productivity and minimize costs. Manufacturing engineering interns shadow the production staff, inspect the tools and equipment of the manufacturing, analyze the quality control documentation, and perform related administrative tasks to familiarize themselves with the plant structure... Show more	$19-32
   Industrial Engineering Internship	An industrial engineer intern is a student working in a company to do industrial engineering tasks. Industrial engineering interns assist industrial engineers... Show more	$13-25

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Java
   • CAD
   • Technical Documentation
   • Project Documentation
   • HTML
   • Test Procedures
   • Photoshop
   • Engineering Documentation
   • Technical Manuals
   • BOM
   • ECO
   • Access Database
   • Engineering Drawings
   • Solidworks

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage ISO qualifications issues and maintain all official documentation.
   • Manage Jenkins security by providing specific access to authorize developers/testers using project base matrix authorization strategy.
   • Train engineering team in Asia on processes, ERP, and AutoCAD.
   • Capture, import and revise engineering drawings using CorelDRAW, PhotoShop and Visio.
   • Enter components and structure into MRP system.
   • Enter part and BOM data into EPICOR database.

   More documentation engineer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your documentation engineer job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A documentation engineer can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, documentation engineers' average salary in vermont is 53% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level documentation engineers 58% less than senior-level documentation engineers.
   • Certifications. A documentation engineer with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a documentation engineer's salary.

   Average documentation engineer salary

   $87,022yearly

   $41.84 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level documentation engineer salary

   $56,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 19, 2026

   Average documentation engineer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$134,045	$64
   2	Nevada	$106,524	$51
   3	Texas	$97,794	$47
   4	Massachusetts	$88,796	$43
   5	Connecticut	$84,177	$40
   6	Florida	$79,347	$38
   7	Illinois	$75,512	$36
   8	Arkansas	$72,983	$35

   Average documentation engineer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$144,177	$69.32	127
   2	JPMorgan Chase & Co.	$123,163	$59.21
   3	Joby Aviation	$114,970	$55.27	13
   4	Microsemi	$105,451	$50.70
   5	J.P. Morgan	$104,888	$50.43
   6	Arcadia	$92,429	$44.44
   7	Lockheed Martin	$92,063	$44.26	225
   8	ACP - Accelerated Care Plus	$91,504	$43.99
   9	Sabre	$90,552	$43.53
   10	Andersen	$86,955	$41.81
   11	Teledyne Technologies Incorporated	$86,773	$41.72	24
   12	Randstad North America, Inc.	$84,716	$40.73	2
   13	General Dynamics	$84,706	$40.72	22
   14	STV Group	$84,036	$40.40	2
   15	Accutron	$74,959	$36.04
   16	Welspun Group	$74,467	$35.80

4. Writing a documentation engineer job description

   A job description for a documentation engineer role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a documentation engineer job description:

   Documentation engineer job description example

   Our client, an autonomous vehicle company, has an immediate need for a Senior Documentation Engineer to join its San Francisco Peninsula, CA based operations.
   Responsibilities Work closely and cross-functionally with functional leads (primarily engineers and technical program managers) to draft, edit, format, release, maintain, and improve test cases that ( a. ) a variety of audiences consult while learning about company systems and technologies, and ( b. ) QA engineers consult while validating that electrical systems, mechanical systems, firmware, and related automotive technologies operate as designed. Comply with all pertinent standards and requirements. Confirm and demonstrate full traceability of test cases to and from system requirements. (This work includes cross-linking test cases in Polarion with the specific system requirements they are meant to verify.) Conduct document reviews with stakeholders. Incorporate their review comments and collect their approvals. Routinely accept and incorporate reviewer feedback (technical and editorial) in a spirit of continuous improvement and mutual support. Demonstrate ongoing expertise in the development of technical content, including text, spreadsheets, presentations, process maps, flowcharts, and other materials. Perform gap analysis for test cases that third-party suppliers, vendors, and other non-writers create. Refine and correct their work as needed for the same audiences described above. Help to guide, motivate, and train non-writers to draft usable test cases. Initiate projects under supervision and drive them to completion. Help to organize, drive and prioritize multiple projects in a quickly changing environment. Manage workload to complete assigned work on time. Communicate program status, issues, risks, and accomplishments clearly and effectively to key stakeholders. Prepare tables, conceptual and process flow diagrams, charts, illustrations, and other visual deliverables that demonstrate your (and our) high standard for clear documentation. Recommend process improvements, and work with cross-functional partners to execute. Request and/or recommend revisions to the test case writer s guide and/or other guides that address your role and responsibilities. Qualifications EXPERIENCE + TRAINING + CREDENTIALS ( a. ) Minimum 5-7 years of practical experience as a technical writer or documentation engineer producing, optimizing, and organizing written materials for advanced technologies. ( b. ) Bachelor s degree or above OR equivalent practical experience in a related field and role. LOCATION Able to work onsite, full time in Foster City, CA, as assigned. SKILL SET ( a. ) Excellent communication skills and fluency in written and spoken English. ( b. ) Expert ability in technical writing and technical editing. ( c. ) Ability to understand technical language while communicating technical information to cross-functional audiences with clarity and concision. ( d. ) Ability to adhere to corporate templates and follow corporate style guides. ( e. ) Ability to use and safeguard confidential information. ( f. ) High attention to detail in a fast-paced environment. ( g. ) Self-starter. Can work independently but isn t afraid to ask for help from others. TOOLS PROFICIENCY ( a. ) Siemens Polarion ALM or experience in using a similar tool for requirements management and/or application lifecycle management, such as Jama Connect. ( b. ) Google Workplace apps. ( c. ) Atlassian apps including Confluence and Jira. ( d. ) Slack. ( e. ) Testrail. ( f. ) Lucidchart or a similar tool for representing ideas visually in diagrams and charts. ( g. ) Other software and/or systems, as assigned. Bonus Qualifications Electric vehicle (EV) or automotive experience, including familiarity with such automotive industry quality standards as ( a. ) ISO 9001:2015, ( b. ) ISO/TS (IATF) 16949:2016, or ( c. ) ISO 26262. Electronics design or manufacturing experience. Familiarity with Dassault Syst mes 3DExperience R2021x and Enovia software.
   
   About Vivo
   
   Having been in business since 2006, Vivo is a full-service recruiting and consulting company, specializing on mid to senior level technology resources. Our brand promise is simple: we get people. We get that our clients don t want to waste time, and that our candidates and employees thrive when given honest feedback and an opportunity to grow.
   
   Whether you re onsite at our Pleasanton headquarters or working for one of Vivo s clients the best brand names out there our promise to you is unwavering: we will treat you like you are our most important employee.
   
   Do you think you get people get what they really need, and get how to deliver? We re not perfect but we re accountable. We re not in 32 countries, but we are in the heart of it all. So, if you are looking for a flexible, fun and high-energy work environment, along with the opportunity to work with some of the world s technology leaders, we can t wait to talk to you.
   
   Vivo We Get People!

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5. Post your job

   To find documentation engineers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any documentation engineers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level documentation engineers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your documentation engineer job on Zippia to find and recruit documentation engineer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit documentation engineers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new documentation engineer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the documentation engineer position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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