How to hire a meter engineer

How to hire a meter engineer, step by step

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

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a meter 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

   Hiring the perfect meter engineer also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of meter engineer salaries for various roles:

   Type of Meter Engineer	Description	Hourly rate
   Meter Engineer	Electrical engineers design, develop, test, and supervise the manufacturing of electrical equipment, such as electric motors, radar and navigation systems, communications systems, and power generation equipment. Electronics engineers design and develop electronic equipment, such as broadcast and communications systems—from portable music players to global positioning systems (GPSs).	$27-57
   Electrical & Instrumentation Designer	An electrical instrumentation designer's main job is to design instruments that can be used in various areas such as laboratories, power plants, or research institutes. They work together with a team or individually to design instruments, create a prototype, and test its functions... Show more	$28-52
   Electrical Designer	An electrical designer designs and develops electrical circuit and system layouts for electric power distribution. The responsibilities of an electrical designer include assembling electrical panels and leading a team of document control personnel in-charged to identify and organize facility maintenance drawings... Show more	$22-42

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Technical Support
   • Data Systems

   Responsibilities:

   • Promote from original position as a staff engineer managing a variety of geotechnical engineering activities to a field engineer inspector position.
   • Analyze malfunctions and equipment failures of various network operating systems such as servers, gateways and routers used in radio communications systems
   • Design, prototyping, and production of test equipment/suites for company design telecommunications equipment.
   • Implement special test configuration to support debugging efforts in resolving an anomaly in the satellite's communications system.

3. Make a budget

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

   • Location. For example, meter engineers' average salary in utah is 44% less than in virginia.
   • Seniority. Entry-level meter engineers 52% less than senior-level meter engineers.
   • Certifications. A meter 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 meter engineer's salary.

   Average meter engineer salary

   $82,665yearly

   $39.74 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level meter engineer salary

   $57,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average meter engineer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$102,881	$49
   2	Massachusetts	$91,426	$44
   3	Texas	$86,804	$42
   4	New York	$85,642	$41
   5	Ohio	$71,931	$35

   Average meter engineer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	LG&E and KU	$97,070	$46.67
   2	PPL	$91,185	$43.84	8
   3	American Electric Power	$88,018	$42.32	3
   4	AK Steel	$81,348	$39.11	1
   5	*n/a*	$80,857	$38.87	4
   6	Tenneco	$79,941	$38.43	3
   7	Shell Energy North America	$79,723	$38.33
   8	Utility Warehouse	$66,651	$32.04

4. Writing a meter engineer job description

   A meter engineer job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a meter engineer job description:

   Meter engineer job description example

   Serves as a technical resource to the AMI full deployment project. Supports overall AMI deployment and operating functions with engineering analysis, troubleshooting, methodical problem identification and resolution activities. This includes ensuring timely installation of field equipment, AMI network optimization, system security verification and any relevant system upgrade analysis.
   
   Directs and/or supports the activities of others in the department, as they perform various activities including installation or checkout of new metering and AMI network equipment, meter programming, AMI network equipment configuration, troubleshooting, testing, etc.
   
   Provides direct support to Meter Operations Center (MOC) in troubleshooting and resolving AMI network system alerts, major communications and/or power outages, meter diagnostic, and/or meter connectivity issues, assisting with interval data validations, troubleshooting read estimations and meter data downloads, and coordinating and assisting technician field personnel to resolve and correct as necessary.
   
   Serves as a technical resource in administration and/or operation of Meter Data Management system (e.g., eMeter/Siemens EnergyIP), Meter Asset Management system (e.g., Radian/WECO WattNet Plus), AMI head end applications (e.g., Landis+Gyr Command Center, Itron OpenWay Collection Engine), AMI network monitoring, diagnostic and field troubleshooting tools. Strives to become proficient in SAP customer information and billing system.
   
   Develops engineering processes and testing procedures impacted or driven by changes in metering configurations and firmware, AMI head end application releases, newly discovered hardware and/or firmware defects, field investigations, etc.
   
   Examines and develops metering and AMI network equipment specifications, maintains standards, and supports the Company in evaluation, procurement and forecasting of new meters, instrument transformers, and new AMI network equipment.
   
   Provides direct assistance to meter shop personnel in programming, testing, installation, and troubleshooting of various meters, metering software, and metering instrument transformers. This includes setting up correct meter configurations and applicable test procedures for test equipment, analyzing customer installation specific diagnostic data, and recommending corrections as needed.
   
   Provides direct assistance to the Transmission, Electric Distribution, and Generation engineering and operations groups in developing and implementing project specific metering requirements and site configurations. This includes reviewing and approving proposed metering components and site design, configuring correct meter and transformer setup, assisting with testing and checkout of meter data points transmitted to responsible control centers, SCADA/RTU equipment, and third party interconnecting utilities' systems, and troubleshooting any issues or directing changes as needed.
   
   Assists other departments regarding customer service related issues, regulatory data requests, and operational standard and reliability inquiries.
   
   Plans and controls all activities so as to provide an accident-free and safe workplace and conducts work activities with regard to environmental rules and regulations in accordance with established Company policies.
   
   7120BR
   
   **State:**
   
   Kentucky
   
   **Physical Effort:**
   
   Frequent standing, walking, climbing, or operating in work-controlled position.
   
   **Preferred Qualifications:**
   
   Ability to use formal engineering training in practical application to electric and gas utility metering systems and assignments. Experience in utility power system design, electricity metering, protection and control applications, data transport networks, and/or telecommunications. Ability to absorb information, apply conceptual skills in practical applications, and achieve desired results in a highly technical, operating environment. Ability to communicate complex ideas effectively. Be able to handle multiple assignments concurrently. Ability to work with and advise a variety of personnel including engineers, management, contractors, supervisors, consultants, laborers, etc.
   
   **Work Conditions:**
   
   Normal office environment with frequent trips to the field and annoyable exposure to stress, noise, heat, etc. Travel throughout the LG&E/KU service area with occasional overnight assignments may be required.
   
   **Required Education & Experience:**
   
   ABET accredited B. S. Degree in Electrical Engineering with a minimum of 5 years of engineering work experience is required. Excellent experience in problem-solving, analysis, and troubleshooting and demonstrated superior written, verbal communication, interpersonal and influencing skills to work cooperatively with internal and external stakeholders.
   
   **Address:**
   
   6900 Enterprise Drive
   
   **City:**
   
   Louisville
   
   **Job Function:**
   
   Engineering
   
   **Position Purpose:**
   
   This position performs engineering work for utility full deployment of advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) network and metering assets, and requires independent application of standard based engineering techniques, procedures, and principles. Departmental areas of responsibility include system design and monitoring, engineering analysis, troubleshooting, and direct technical support to utility AMI operations and infrastructure. Work is conducted with established regulatory compliance, operating policies and standards compliance.
   
   **External Title:**
   
   Electrical Engineer - Meter Engineering

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right meter engineer for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with meter engineer candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of 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 meter engineer

   Once you've found the meter engineer candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   To prepare for the new meter engineer first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

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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