How to hire a lead engineer

How to hire a lead engineer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step lead 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 lead engineer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new lead engineer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a lead engineer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The lead engineer hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   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 lead 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 lead engineer that fits the bill.

   This list presents lead engineer salaries for various positions.

   Type of Lead Engineer	Description	Hourly rate
   Lead Engineer	Mechanical engineering is one of the broadest engineering disciplines. Mechanical engineers design, develop, build, and test mechanical and thermal sensors and devices, including tools, engines, and machines.	$28-57
   Engineer Lead Quality Assurance Lead	Engineer Lead Quality Assurance Leads are responsible for managing the designing and operations of hardware or software testing. Their duties include developing testing plans, implement risk mitigation strategies, communicate process improvements to cross-teams such as marketing and engineering, resolve the conflict between teams, and ensures product or software adheres to the organization and industry standards... Show more	$40-68
   Principal Software Engineer	A Principal Software Engineer is responsible for the technical aspects of an organization's projects. They diagnose, document, and troubleshoot systems to resolve problems identified through testing, as well as implement strategies to improve integration and efficiency.	$47-87

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Java
   • Python
   • Architecture
   • C++
   • JavaScript
   • API
   • GIT
   • Database
   • Azure
   • Project Management
   • Linux
   • Troubleshoot
   • Windows
   • Emerging Technologies

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage, train, and supervise other android developers.
   • Manage final inspection and performance testing of API centrifugal pumps and steam turbines.
   • Design and manage the build of infrastructure to support the corporate CRM applications used throughout the enterprise.
   • Provide consultation to the ISO team in achieving certification, and enable company to win many more deals as a result.
   • Support DOD agency needs in accomplishing engineer technical and non-technical goals associate with wireless LAN technology products.
   • Develop the presentation tier using JSP, JavaScript, CSS, XHTML and HTML.

   More lead engineer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your lead engineer job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A lead engineer salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

   For example, the average salary for a lead engineer in Minnesota may be lower than in Hawaii, and an entry-level lead engineer usually earns less than a senior-level lead engineer. Additionally, a lead engineer with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

   Average lead engineer salary

   $84,927yearly

   $40.83 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level lead engineer salary

   $60,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 22, 2025

   Average lead engineer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$110,162	$53
   2	Massachusetts	$91,308	$44
   3	Washington	$88,778	$43
   4	Virginia	$86,884	$42
   5	Oregon	$86,337	$42
   6	Colorado	$85,517	$41
   7	Texas	$84,769	$41
   8	Georgia	$83,745	$40
   9	Illinois	$81,718	$39
   10	New York	$81,640	$39
   11	Indiana	$81,499	$39
   12	Arizona	$81,462	$39
   13	New Jersey	$80,981	$39
   14	Tennessee	$80,829	$39
   15	Michigan	$80,525	$39
   16	Delaware	$80,287	$39
   17	Pennsylvania	$80,153	$39
   18	North Carolina	$77,556	$37
   19	Ohio	$76,893	$37
   20	Missouri	$76,604	$37

   Average lead engineer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$184,681	$88.79	1,362
   2	eBay	$171,347	$82.38	43
   3	Google	$169,696	$81.58	801
   4	Levi Strauss & Co.	$166,291	$79.95
   5	Netflix	$165,704	$79.67	23
   6	PayPal	$164,986	$79.32	52
   7	Canva	$164,760	$79.21	7
   8	Match Group	$164,255	$78.97	30
   9	The Knot	$163,189	$78.46	4
   10	Stitch Fix	$162,337	$78.05	10
   11	Snowflake Computing	$157,384	$75.67	42
   12	Microsoft	$157,357	$75.65	1,001
   13	Apple	$156,165	$75.08	1,050
   14	Move	$155,710	$74.86
   15	Hotel Tonight, Inc.	$154,990	$74.51
   16	LinkedIn	$154,684	$74.37	91
   17	MongoDB	$153,256	$73.68	90
   18	First Republic Bank	$152,007	$73.08
   19	DocuSign	$151,052	$72.62	14
   20	Palo Alto Networks	$150,819	$72.51	216

4. Writing a lead engineer job description

   A job description for a lead 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 lead engineer job description:

   Lead engineer job description example

   Minimum qualifications:
   
   + Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience.
   
   + 15 years of experience in the semiconductor industry.
   
   + 5 years of experience in emulation.
   
   + Experience in emulation environments with one or more industry standard platforms like Zebu, HAPS, Palladium, Virtualizer, GEM5
   
   Preferred qualifications:
   
   + MS or PhD degree.
   
   + 8 years of emulation experience.
   
   + Experience with developing new transactors and hybrid emulation model development.
   
   + Experience with emulation vendor management to rapidly address emulation hardware and software issues
   
   + Experience with silicon bring-up and direct the team's progress and mentor engineers in a startup environment.
   
   + Solid Computer Architecture fundamentals and proficiency in test-planning and automation
   
   Google engineers develop the next-generation technologies that change how users connect, explore, and interact with information and one another. As a member of an extraordinarily creative, motivated and talented team, you develop new products that are used by millions of people. We need our engineers to be versatile and passionate to take on new problems as we continue to push technology forward. If you get excited about building new things and working across discipline lines, then our team might be your next career step.
   
   Lead the Emulation function for a rapidly growing Silicon team working on multiple concurrent programs.
   
   Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. Our Devices & Services team combines the best of Google AI, Software, and Hardware to create radically helpful experiences for users. We research, design, and develop new technologies and hardware to make our user's interaction with computing faster, seamless, and more powerful. Whether finding new ways to capture and sense the world around us, advancing form factors, or improving interaction methods, the Devices & Services team is making people's lives better through technology.
   
   + Collaborate cross-functionally to define customized emulation strategy for various SoC programs
   
   + Lead validation test-plan development and execution on Emulators
   
   + Deliver Emulation capabilities and capacity to software teams
   
   + Scope and build Emulation headcount, budget and capacity for each program
   
   + Develop and deploy scalable Emulation infrastructure strategy

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right lead engineer for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with lead engineers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit lead engineers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   During your first interview to recruit lead engineers, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   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 lead engineer

   Once you've selected the best lead engineer candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing 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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How much does it cost to hire a lead engineer?