Director of Engineering: skills & capabilities the market requires
Based on 229 real Director of Engineering job postings, here is what companies actually require for this role today: the capabilities that define it, the hard skills named most often, the scope expected, typical experience and pay. The market leans hardest on Technical Depth (74%) and Strategic Leadership (71%).
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Core capabilities for a Director of Engineering
- Technical Depth — required in 74% of postings
- Strategic Leadership — required in 71% of postings
- Cross-functional Leadership — required in 57% of postings
- Operational Excellence — required in 45% of postings
- Risk, Security & Compliance — required in 42% of postings
- People Leadership — required in 40% of postings
- Stakeholder Management — required in 39% of postings
Most-required hard skills
- Budget Management
- Vendor Management
- Project Management
- Enterprise Architecture
- Java
- Python
- Cybersecurity
Leadership & soft skills
- Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Leadership
- Stakeholder Management
- Strategic Thinking
Scope, experience & pay
Director of Engineering roles expect deal / M&A experience in 3% of postings, IPO or capital markets in 3%, and transformation in 40%. Typical stated experience: 10 years. Pay signal from postings (base): $217K–$296K.
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