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The differences between planning engineers and process improvement 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 planning engineer and a process improvement engineer. Additionally, a planning engineer has an average salary of $82,521, which is higher than the $82,473 average annual salary of a process improvement engineer.
The top three skills for a planning engineer include project management, infrastructure and transmission planning. The most important skills for a process improvement engineer are lean six sigma, sigma, and project management.
| Planning Engineer | Process Improvement Engineer | |
| Yearly salary | $82,521 | $82,473 |
| Hourly rate | $39.67 | $39.65 |
| Growth rate | 10% | 10% |
| Number of jobs | 56,792 | 55,438 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
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.
A process improvement engineer specializes in conducting research and analysis to develop new strategies and ideas to improve the processes in a manufacturing plant or a similar setting. They prioritize efficiency and profitability. Most of the time, engineers participate in a series of meetings where they coordinate with fellow engineers to determine opportunities for product growth and development. Moreover, a process improvement engineer is also responsible for crafting new policies and regulations, upgrading systems, and developing new practices to ensure product quality and customer satisfaction.
Planning engineers and process improvement engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Planning Engineer | Process Improvement Engineer | |
| Average salary | $82,521 | $82,473 |
| Salary range | Between $61,000 And $110,000 | Between $62,000 And $109,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Boston, MA |
| Highest paying state | California | Massachusetts |
| Best paying company | Meta | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Energy | Technology |
There are a few differences between a planning engineer and a process improvement engineer in terms of educational background:
| Planning Engineer | Process Improvement Engineer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 75% | Bachelor's Degree, 69% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | Northwestern University | New York University |
Here are the differences between planning engineers' and process improvement engineers' demographics:
| Planning Engineer | Process Improvement Engineer | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 83.2% Female, 16.8% | Male, 63.2% Female, 36.8% |
| Race ratio | 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% | Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.6% Asian, 10.5% White, 69.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 4% | 4% |