Performance Engineer Salary

A performance engineer ensures that their organization's products work as promised. Their main goal is to identify any issues that would cause the product to not work as described and subsequently help resolve those issues. They are involved in the design, implementation, and operation stages of product development. During each phase of the project, the performance engineer must identify potential problems; this is not limited to issues that might occur in manufacturing, usage, and repair - it also includes testing the product under normal usage conditions to ensure it will last for the advertised life cycle. Performance engineers are also responsible for testing the system in ways it was not designed for, ensuring the system can withstand the wear and tear of consumer usage. This includes running cycle life tests to ensure that the product will remain in the same working condition until it has become old or obsolete.

A performance engineer usually has a bachelor’s degree in engineering, product development, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, or a related field. Some software and programming knowledge is preferred, as is the ability to learn the basics of a variety of programming languages. A performance engineer must work well within a development team and on their own with minimal supervision. They should be able to think outside the box, while at the same time be able to follow strict testing methods, which ensures repeatability to identify potential problems within a product or system. (Copyright 2017 PayScale.com)

Performance Engineer Tasks

• Monitor and report on day to day network performance.
• Isolate performance issues, and recommend and implement solutions.
• Collaborate with senior engineers to review performance and trends with vendors.
• Develop and conduct performance and stress tests, and analyze data.

For Performance Engineers, working in the bustling city of San Francisco has its advantages, including an above-average pay rate. Performance Engineers will also find cushy salaries in Santa Clara (+41 percent), San Jose (+34 percent), Boston (+17 percent), and Austin (+14 percent). Compared to the national average, Charlotte Performance Engineers have considerably lower salaries, 27 percent below the national average to be exact. Location appears to be a major driving force in pay for those in this profession. A couple other locations with smaller-than-average paychecks include Columbus (18 percent lower) and Phoenix (17 percent lower).