Senior director of engineering vs manager, systems engineering

The differences between senior directors of engineering and managers, systems engineering 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 senior director of engineering, becoming a manager, systems engineering takes usually requires 6-8 years. Additionally, a senior director of engineering has an average salary of $177,949, which is higher than the $130,127 average annual salary of a manager, systems engineering.

The top three skills for a senior director of engineering include cloud, architecture and continuous improvement. The most important skills for a manager, systems engineering are systems engineering, architecture, and DOD.

Senior director of engineering vs manager, systems engineering overview

	Senior Director Of Engineering	Manager, Systems Engineering
Yearly salary	$177,949	$130,127
Hourly rate	$85.55	$62.56
Growth rate	2%	16%
Number of jobs	75,555	174,962
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 70%
Average age	48	47
Years of experience	-	8

What does a senior director of engineering do?

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.

What does a manager, systems engineering do?

A systems engineering manager is responsible for monitoring the efficiency of the company's technology systems and network infrastructure. System engineering managers inspect the output deliverables of computer systems, identifying process improvement techniques to improve optimal performance and maintain high-quality results. They handle the department's budget and allocate adequate resources to support project management operations and requirements. A systems engineering manager must have excellent knowledge of the technology industry, handling technical complexities, and configuring system management tools.

Senior director of engineering vs manager, systems engineering salary

Senior directors of engineering and managers, systems engineering have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Director Of Engineering	Manager, Systems Engineering
Average salary	$177,949	$130,127
Salary range	Between $120,000 And $262,000	Between $96,000 And $176,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Alaska	California
Best paying company	Apple	Pure Storage
Best paying industry	Technology	Manufacturing

Differences between senior director of engineering and manager, systems engineering education

There are a few differences between a senior director of engineering and a manager, systems engineering in terms of educational background:

	Senior Director Of Engineering	Manager, Systems Engineering
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 69%	Bachelor's Degree, 70%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Electrical Engineering
Most common college	University of Michigan - Ann Arbor	Carnegie Mellon University

Senior director of engineering vs manager, systems engineering demographics

Here are the differences between senior directors of engineering' and managers, systems engineering' demographics:

	Senior Director Of Engineering	Manager, Systems Engineering
Average age	48	47
Gender ratio	Male, 93.3% Female, 6.7%	Male, 87.8% Female, 12.2%
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, 6.5% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 9.8% Asian, 12.7% White, 65.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	9%	11%

Differences between senior director of engineering and manager, systems engineering duties and responsibilities

Senior director of engineering example responsibilities.

Define the architecture of the next generation telecommunication products and lead the new technology introduction.
Define, develop and implement a manage cloud services architecture approach that is based on modular processes and continual integration/deployment interactions.
Spearhead industry-first embed Java VM, embed DCOM products.
Lead on multiple cross-functional quality initiatives for improve QA process improvements.
Change the organization from waterfall to scrum and agile development methodologies.
Remain an individual contributor and IP generator in parallel with management responsibilities.

Manager, systems engineering example responsibilities.

Manage office operations and procedures, including administering payroll, preparing office correspondence, and managing documentation.
Lead ITIL project to develop and implement internal training curriculum.
Manage enterprise systems, including technology selection, upgrades, optimization and performance against SLA targets.
Partner with sales to achieve sustain growth by developing new products and services such as VOIP and IPTV.
Manage the SDLC for insurance and financial services subsidiary for numerous components to supplement and enhance their agency software.
Manage a team of 19 technicians with expertise ranging from electrical to HVAC and providing 7/24/365 support and coverage.

Senior director of engineering vs manager, systems engineering skills

Common senior director of engineering skills

Cloud, 7%
Architecture, 6%
Continuous Improvement, 5%
Software Development, 5%
Infrastructure, 5%
Java, 5%

Common manager, systems engineering skills

Systems Engineering, 13%
Architecture, 8%
DOD, 5%
Infrastructure, 5%
Project Management, 5%
RF, 3%

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Senior Director Of Engineering
Senior Director Of Engineering vs Manager, Systems Engineering

Updated January 8, 2025

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