How to hire a senior electrical designer

How to hire a senior electrical designer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step senior electrical designer hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a senior electrical designer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new senior electrical designer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a senior electrical designer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the senior electrical designer you need to hire. Certain senior electrical designer roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A senior electrical designer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, senior electrical designers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list presents senior electrical designer salaries for various positions.

   Type of Senior Electrical Designer	Description	Hourly rate
   Senior Electrical Designer	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).	$31-55
   Outside Plant Engineer	The job of an outside plant engineer revolves around design, constructing, and maintaining plant infrastructure, engineering, and conducting route analysis of aerial and underground fiber-optic installations. Typical day-to-day duties include assisting clients in resolving issues when they arise, developing engineering plans, schedules, and costs relevant to the projects, and providing guidance on telecommunication issues... Show more	$29-56
   Field Engineer	A field engineer's role will vary on the industry or line of work involved. However, the primary responsibility will mostly revolve around handling equipment and machinery, ensuring that they function effectively and safely... Show more	$24-47

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Electrical Design
   • Revit
   • Electrical Equipment
   • Electrical Systems
   • Autocad Electrical
   • NEC
   • Cost Estimates
   • PLC
   • Project Management
   • NFPA
   • Construction Drawings
   • Panel Layouts
   • One-Line Diagrams
   • Engineering Design

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead all phases of facility HAZWOPER projects including environmental HVAC upgrades and environmental remediation initiatives.
   • Design control systems according to NFPA 79 and IEC 204 electrical standards.
   • Coordinate safety training and ensure OSHA compliance through training and site review.
   • Design include various NFPA requirements (including fire pumps).
   • Document existing control panels, HMI, and PLC s, to move or duplicate for the new operators control building.
   • Red-Line several large instrument/Electrical packages for as-built.

   More senior electrical designer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your senior electrical designer job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A senior electrical designer salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, senior electrical designers' average salary in nevada is 41% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level senior electrical designers earn 43% less than senior-level senior electrical designers.
   • Certifications. A senior electrical designer with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a senior electrical designer's salary.

   Average senior electrical designer salary

   $87,859yearly

   $42.24 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level senior electrical designer salary

   $66,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 30, 2026

   Average senior electrical designer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$114,068	$55
   2	Texas	$99,178	$48
   3	Illinois	$94,443	$45
   4	New Jersey	$93,289	$45
   5	Delaware	$90,410	$43
   6	Massachusetts	$88,948	$43
   7	Oregon	$86,491	$42
   8	Virginia	$85,919	$41
   9	Oklahoma	$81,701	$39
   10	Tennessee	$81,365	$39
   11	Colorado	$81,003	$39
   12	New York	$78,584	$38
   13	Nebraska	$78,085	$38
   14	Minnesota	$77,686	$37
   15	North Carolina	$75,299	$36
   16	Georgia	$74,482	$36
   17	Florida	$74,090	$36
   18	Arizona	$72,091	$35
   19	Pennsylvania	$70,523	$34
   20	Michigan	$70,081	$34

   Average senior electrical designer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Lam Research	$109,392	$52.59	5
   2	Cirrus Aircraft	$105,684	$50.81	13
   3	Praxair	$95,279	$45.81
   4	Halff Associates	$93,422	$44.91	16
   5	Eversource Energy	$92,561	$44.50	4
   6	New York Power Authority	$92,396	$44.42	2
   7	Sargent & Lundy	$90,898	$43.70	930
   8	SSOE Group	$90,364	$43.44	14
   9	ICONMA	$90,349	$43.44	2
   10	Techtronic Industries TTI	$90,279	$43.40	23
   11	PEAK Technical Staffing USA	$90,145	$43.34
   12	Oxford Solutions	$90,111	$43.32
   13	Smith Seckman Reid	$90,078	$43.31	11
   14	Harsco	$89,893	$43.22
   15	Interface Engineering	$89,060	$42.82	15
   16	Oceaneering	$88,612	$42.60	8
   17	ESPO	$88,414	$42.51
   18	Burns & McDonnell	$88,203	$42.41	222
   19	Gresham Smith	$88,118	$42.36	11
   20	IMEG	$87,946	$42.28	207

4. Writing a senior electrical designer job description

   A senior electrical designer 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 senior electrical designer job description:

   Senior electrical designer job description example

   At SSOE, we design and build the future for our clients, colleagues, and communities. Our architecturally driven practice delivers a broad range of culturally significant designs that inspire and energize. We design places for people to heal, learn, govern, and work. Our clients range from important community institutions to companies in both the private and public sectors-including Fortune 100 corporations that are leading the nation's innovation economy.
   
   Embracing a collaborative and supportive culture, we provide the platform of a dynamic, integrated architectural, engineering, and interior design firm. It's through our people that we differentiate ourselves, empowering our team members to take ownership of their work while providing resources to do great projects for our clients.
   Responsibilities SSOE is seeking an experienced Electrical Designer. The ideal candidate will have consulting engineering experience in power distribution, lighting, fire alarm, communications, electronic safety and security systems, and grounding for educational (K-12 and higher education) and/or commercial facilities. Aviation experience is a plus. Medium voltage design experience is required. This position has some day-related flexible work schedules and work from home options.
   • Produces finished plans and specifications and final acceptance or rejection of major items involving materials, equipment, manufacturer's quality, and field construction results.
   • Typical design tasks include power distribution at low and medium voltage, lighting, fire alarm, communications, electronic safety and security systems, control and calculations, grounding system design and power study analysis.
   • Serves as a job captain on single discipline projects and may serve as a job captain on multi-discipline projects.
   • Prepares or reviews construction budgets based on experience and scope of project.
   • Writes scope of work for design based on preliminary review and meetings with the customer.
   • May be requested to perform project management functions.
   • May assign and review work of project design team. Checks progress of work and alerts project manager to changes of scope or additional services.
   • May represent the firm in meetings and conferences to resolve important questions and to plan and coordinate a project.
   • May prepare total design and construction cost estimates. Qualifications • Associate degree or certification of completion of other post-secondary training in Electrical Engineering preferred.
   • Minimum fifteen (15) years of experience with SSOE as a Designer or nineteen (19) years of experience with former employer(s).
   • Experience with medium voltage strongly desired.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right senior electrical designer for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with senior electrical designers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit senior electrical designers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit senior electrical designers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   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 senior electrical designer

   Once you've found the senior electrical designer 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.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new senior electrical designer. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

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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How much does it cost to hire a senior electrical designer?