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The differences between lead quality engineers and planning engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a lead quality engineer and a planning engineer. Additionally, a lead quality engineer has an average salary of $104,296, which is higher than the $82,521 average annual salary of a planning engineer.
The top three skills for a lead quality engineer include java, corrective action and continuous improvement. The most important skills for a planning engineer are project management, infrastructure, and transmission planning.
| Lead Quality Engineer | Planning Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $104,296 | $82,521 |
| Hourly rate | $50.14 | $39.67 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 81,952 | 56,792 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Lead quality engineers are engineering professionals who manage a team of quality assurance professionals that ensure the overall quality of manufactured products. These engineers must create comprehensive test plans and test cases to ensure that the finished products have met the client requirements. They have to develop and implement quality standards and procedures while developing internal corrective actions after performing the internal processes audits. Lead quality engineers must also provide new product quality training to members of the quality control and production team.
A planning engineer is in charge of developing plans and systems to organize and schedule project procedures, ensuring efficiency and timeliness. Their responsibilities revolve around learning and understanding the extent of all operations, setting schedules and objectives, liaising with external parties such as vendors or distributors, and maintaining an active communication line with other departments. Furthermore, a planning engineer must monitor the progress of the workflow and the performance of the workforce, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Lead quality engineers and planning engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Lead Quality Engineer | Planning Engineer | |
| Average salary | $104,296 | $82,521 |
| Salary range | Between $80,000 And $135,000 | Between $61,000 And $110,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Energy |
There are a few differences between a lead quality engineer and a planning engineer in terms of educational background:
| Lead Quality Engineer | Planning Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 68% | Bachelor's Degree, 75% |
| Most common major | Mechanical Engineering | Electrical Engineering |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | Northwestern University |
Here are the differences between lead quality engineers' and planning engineers' demographics:
| Lead Quality Engineer | Planning Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 76.6% Female, 23.4% | Male, 83.2% Female, 16.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 15.2% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 15.6% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |