Mechanical engineering manager vs senior mechanical designer

The differences between mechanical engineering managers and senior mechanical designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes More than 10 years to become a mechanical engineering manager, becoming a senior mechanical designer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a mechanical engineering manager has an average salary of $116,922, which is higher than the $103,765 average annual salary of a senior mechanical designer.

The top three skills for a mechanical engineering manager include CAD, mechanical design and solidworks. The most important skills for a senior mechanical designer are CAD, mechanical design, and GD.

Mechanical engineering manager vs senior mechanical designer overview

	Mechanical Engineering Manager	Senior Mechanical Designer
Yearly salary	$116,922	$103,765
Hourly rate	$56.21	$49.89
Growth rate	2%	2%
Number of jobs	74,789	71,958
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	48	41
Years of experience	-	6

What does a mechanical engineering manager do?

A mechanical engineering manager is responsible for leading the mechanical projects and processes of an organization to ensure high-quality deliverables according to business requirements and specifications. Mechanical engineering managers inspect the tools and equipment and coordinate with trusted suppliers for low-cost reduction materials and control installations. They also resolve mechanical issues and determine the best management techniques to prevent downtimes and operational delays. A mechanical engineering manager must have excellent communication and critical-thinking skills, especially in analyzing blueprints and schematics to secure components.

What does a senior mechanical designer do?

A Senior Mechanical Designer is responsible for creating effective mechanical designs for their company and developing mechanical concepts in accordance with project requirements. They assist the engineering manager in coaching other mechanical engineers to develop design skills.

Mechanical engineering manager vs senior mechanical designer salary

Mechanical engineering managers and senior mechanical designers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Mechanical Engineering Manager	Senior Mechanical Designer
Average salary	$116,922	$103,765
Salary range	Between $82,000 And $165,000	Between $81,000 And $131,000
Highest paying City	Mountain View, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	California
Best paying company	Meta	Google
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Automotive

Differences between mechanical engineering manager and senior mechanical designer education

There are a few differences between a mechanical engineering manager and a senior mechanical designer in terms of educational background:

	Mechanical Engineering Manager	Senior Mechanical Designer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 74%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Mechanical Engineering	Mechanical Engineering
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	Carnegie Mellon University

Mechanical engineering manager vs senior mechanical designer demographics

Here are the differences between mechanical engineering managers' and senior mechanical designers' demographics:

	Mechanical Engineering Manager	Senior Mechanical Designer
Average age	48	41
Gender ratio	Male, 94.6% Female, 5.4%	Male, 94.1% Female, 5.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.5% Asian, 12.9% White, 70.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 11.4% White, 71.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	9%	5%

Differences between mechanical engineering manager and senior mechanical designer duties and responsibilities

Mechanical engineering manager example responsibilities.

Coordinate and manage prototype development and validation testing.
Manage QA for research orient development efforts and for high visibility, production focuse development efforts tie to revenue generation.
Work with the in-house UL and compliance engineers, ESD engineers, and the shock/vibration engineers.
Design various hand-held and permanently mount RF instruments for use in RF broadcast and transmission installations.
Engineer and/or design and/or value engineer (redesign) new and/or existing HVAC systems for commercial and/or industrial applications.
Select HVAC equipment such as boilers, chillers, cooling towers, air handling units and roof top units.

Senior mechanical designer example responsibilities.

Lead FPGA development of key digital communication component used in successful demonstration of spacecraft radio link.
Create and modify very large assemblies in Creo which are used to create drawings for top level spacecraft assemblies.
Generate fabrication and assembly drawings for fabrication of commercial/Industrial water heaters and boilers base on ISO 9000 and AWA standards.
Perform complex interference fit checks, motion studies, and tolerance stack-up analysis on large assemblies using Pro/E - Creo software.
Verify all design factors including performance, tolerances, fitting, materials, surface finish and BOM for components and systems.
Improve dynamic response of microscope using ANSYS vibration simulation.

Mechanical engineering manager vs senior mechanical designer skills

Common mechanical engineering manager skills

CAD, 9%
Mechanical Design, 8%
Solidworks, 7%
Project Management, 6%
Continuous Improvement, 6%
Mechanical Systems, 4%

Common senior mechanical designer skills

CAD, 12%
Mechanical Design, 11%
GD, 5%
Creo, 5%
Autocad, 4%
FEA, 4%

Mechanical Engineering Manager vs. similar jobs

Mechanical Engineering Manager related careers

Mechanical Engineering Manager related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Executive Management Industry
Mechanical Engineering Manager
Mechanical Engineering Manager vs Senior Mechanical Designer

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse executive management jobs