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The differences between senior directors of engineering and design managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes More than 10 years to become both a senior director of engineering and a design manager. Additionally, a senior director of engineering has an average salary of $177,949, which is higher than the $102,637 average annual salary of a design manager.
The top three skills for a senior director of engineering include cloud, architecture and continuous improvement. The most important skills for a design manager are sketch, project management, and visualization.
| Senior Director Of Engineering | Design Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $177,949 | $102,637 |
| Hourly rate | $85.55 | $49.34 |
| Growth rate | 2% | 2% |
| Number of jobs | 75,555 | 61,273 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A senior director of engineering is responsible for the collaborative success of the engineering and technical projects of the organization. Senior directors of engineering coordinate with different project teams to identify and develop cost-reduction processes, as well as strategizing on procedures to maximize the team's effort and productivity within the approved deadline. They also implement quality assurance policies to ensure the efficiency and accuracy of the project's adherence to client specifications and business requirements. A senior director of engineering reports to the senior management, conducting data analysis and identifying business opportunities to maintain the company's financial growth and stability.
A design manager is responsible for creating graphic and digital designs, following clients' specifications, and managing project deliverables efficiently. Design managers work closely with the marketing and public relations department, developing strategies to promote the brand to the target audience. They coordinate with the creative team and present the design ideas to the management, ask for final approval, perform revisions as needed, and follow the budget goals. A design manager must have excellent communication and leadership skills to handle the design team's concerns and needs.
Senior directors of engineering and design managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Senior Director Of Engineering | Design Manager | |
| Average salary | $177,949 | $102,637 |
| Salary range | Between $120,000 And $262,000 | Between $69,000 And $150,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Alaska | California |
| Best paying company | Apple | Meta |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Technology |
There are a few differences between a senior director of engineering and a design manager in terms of educational background:
| Senior Director Of Engineering | Design Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 69% | Bachelor's Degree, 62% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor |
Here are the differences between senior directors of engineering' and design managers' demographics:
| Senior Director Of Engineering | Design Manager | |
| Average age | 48 | 48 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 93.3% Female, 6.7% | Male, 63.8% Female, 36.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 8.4% Asian, 17.0% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.1% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 11.8% White, 71.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |