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Methodology
An email survey was sent to subscribers of Design News during the month of April, 2010. Results of the study were tabulated by Research Results, an independent research firm. The survey evaluated compensation as well as job satisfaction: The following areas were studied:
Current salary and bonus and how that compares to a year ago Length of employment Engineering disciplines Level of job stress compared to previous year Reasons for job stress Impact of economy Level of supervisory and/or budgetary responsibility compared to previous year Average work hours weekly Level of satisfaction as a design engineer Reasons for job satisfaction and dissatisfaction Challenges of job Size of company Companys major product line
Results are based on 1,672 usable replies. At a 95% confidence level, results are accurate and projectable within a + or 2.8% margin of error.
April 2010 2
Average Age: 49
April 2010 3
April 2010 4
$50,000 or less $50,000 - $59,999 $60,000 - $69,999 $70,000 - $79,000 $80,000 - $89,999 $90,000 - $99,999 $100,000 - $109,999 $110,000 - $119,999 $120,000 - $129,000 $130,000 - $149,000 $150,000 or more 5% 4% 6% 7%
April 2010 5
If your base salary changed over the past 12 months, by how much?
Less than 2% increase 2-4% increase 5-7% increase 8-10% increase Over 10% increase 4% 28% 6% 2% 1%
Increased 40%
Decreased 9%
1%
1%
2%
Average Salary Decrease: 24% Median Salary Decrease: 10%
4%
April 2010 6
Over $50,000 $9,000 - $49,999 $7,000 - $8,999 $5,000 - $6,999 $3,000 - $4,999 $1,000 - $2,999 Less than $1,000 No bonus/commission
April 2010 7
How does your bonus, commission, etc. plan compare with 2009?
If your bonus, commission, etc. plan increased/ decreased compared to 2009, how much?
Less than 2% increase 2-4% increase 7% 16% 12% 13% 51%
Increased 13%
Decreased 15%
Less than 2% decrease 2-4% decrease 5-7% decrease 8-10% decrease Over 10% decrease
3% 8% 7% 8%
74%
April 2010 8
April 2010 9
7%
Average years: 18 Mechanical engineering Electrical/electronics engineering Manufacturing engineering Electromechanical engineering
% of respondents
6 - 10 years
9%
11 - 15 years
13%
Over 20 years
58%
April 2010 10
Average years: 9
10 + years 51%
35+ years
Average years: 12
April 2010 11
How has the number of hours you work each week changed over the past year?
Under 40 hours
6%
40-44
45-49
28%
50-54
12%
55-59
6%
60 hours or more
5%
Average hours: 46
April 2010 12
If you are supervising people, how has this changed during the past 2 years?
100%
Same 44%
50%
0%
April 2010 13
What is the number of employees that you are supervising today and what is the number of employees you supervised two years ago?
52%
Average number of employees supervised in 2010: 15 Average number of employees supervised 2 years ago: 11
40%
Number of employees supervised in 2010 Number of employees supervised 2 years ago
None
Fewer than 5
5 to 9
10 to 19
20 to 49
50 or more
April 2010 14
Please rate your level of agreement with the statements below pertaining to your role as an engineer.
Strongly Agree/Agree
Neutral
Disagree/Strongly Disagree
63%
19%
18%
59%
24%
17%
49%
33%
18%
44%
26%
30%
44%
31%
25%
April 2010 15
April 2010 16
In general, how satisfied are you with your career in design engineering?
Freedom to design
We keep outsourcing jobs without recognizing the value of the employees we let go compared to the mercenary attitude of consultants
Making a contribution
Somewhat Satisfied 36%
Sense of accomplishment
The industry is so volatile and the economy has not fully recovered from the recession yet, so another dip could mean more job losses April 2010 17
% of respondents
What factors greatly impact on your dissatisfaction with your current job?
Company politics No room for advancement No recognition Salary Stress level too high Workload Not challenging enough Outsourcing Company unstable Lack of benefits Lack of adequate technology Colleagues Location Other
% of respondents
75% 75% 67% 57% 56% 56% 55% 54% 54% 48% 44% 43% 41% 35% 28% 28% 28% 21% 18% 12% 3%
73% 68% 61% 59% 53% 50% 37% 37% 33% 31% 29% 21% 12% 14%
April 2010 18
Workload Balancing work with home/ personal life Keeping up with technology Company downsizing Lack of career development Working with outdated equip./technology Company stability Need to learn more skill sets
48% 42% 38% 32% 29% 28% 26% 24% 17% 16% 10% 10%
Global design teams Work conditions Poor relationships with co-workers Other
Base: Find job Extremely/Very/Somewhat challenging
51%
40%
9%
More
Same amount
Less
April 2010 19
How concerned or secure do you feel about your job in the current economic climate?
The economy is not recovering and there are less and less engineering opportunities due to outsourcing and lack of manufacturing jobs
Management attitude towards engineering, they Not Very seem to think they can assign Concerned work with less than 23% appropriate time and resources and it will magically happen. Lack of company respect and integrity.
Engineering is the one thing that helps drive this company forward. We have enough projects to keep busy during slow periods.
The company has had to shed jobs recently, and this happened because there have been delays in contracts and some contract cancellations.
April 2010 20
Why do you feel this way about your job security? Show More Concern Over Job Security
The Economy
(N=106) No company or position seems to be completely safe during the recession, and global competition continues to create pressure. The economy is not picking up fast enough, which affects the bottom end of the company and therefore my chances of growth. Retention of personnel is always based on available funding and funding in very insecure in the present economy. I work for a small company, in a down economy it is very easy for a small company to go under.
Outsourcing
(N=101)
The global economy puts pressure on even the most stable companies/organizations. Competing with growing economies like those of China and India means Americans standard of living (unsustainable in many cases) will diminish even as others rise. Outsourcing our work to India or China, even though they do substandard work, but its cheap. Governmental regulations that are pushing business offshore. Outsourcing to India and China is eliminating engineering opportunities within the U.S. My company is constantly moving jobs overseas with NO notice. Staff assuming responsibility overseas lack adequate job skills and training and often fails at simple tasks, which calls for extraordinary efforts on our part. Additional effort is not appreciated nor seen as a value.
Company Downsizing/Layoffs
(N=46)
Due to rising cost of goods and materials, companies will downsize to reduce their expenses. 30% layoffs in this company; from 2,000 to 450 in 5 years. Constant layoffs and outsourcing. Very few other opportunities to move into.
Government/Politics
(N=33)
Current administration and congressional policies will severely undermine U.S. economic stability. Government is spending money they dont have. Probable increased taxes and inflation. Government needs to bail out private industry and stop allowing outsourcing of our engineering jobs. Shift in the political philosophy from capitalistic republic to a socialist republic on the part of the U.S. Government.
April 2010 21
Why do you feel this way about your job security? Show Less Concern Over Job Security
Companies are Stable
(N=44)
My company has weathered the current financial situation quite well. Our business has continued to prosper. EPA regulations insure continued requirements for product development. Business is good again. Even during downtime last year, upper management knew they had to hang on to the talented people they had, or suffer loss. Our company seems to be in a good place financially and is in a market sector that is less affected my market downturns. Business opportunities are on the upswing. Roll is key part of value offering we make to our customers. Experience is valued.
April 2010 22
Has your company experienced any of the following during the last 12 months?
100%
41%
60% + 7%
90% 80%
Hiring freeze
25%
Hiring/Adding personnel
10 19% 29%
23%
1 9% 26%
Other
11%
10% 0%
April 2010 23
How did this downsizing affect your position? How did your responsibilities change?
Our group lost a larger percentage and we now have more work with fewer people. More work from less qualified people and expected to do it in the same amount of time. Details handed off from those leaving always need lots of information than what was in the file. More work and travel for the same compensation. I worry that I will be the next on the chopping block. I now have the work of two former employees; I have to triage my work to determine what gets done the details get overlooked because I dont have the time! I am doing less of the engineering work I want to do and more of the simple tasks. Everyone has a lot more work to do, although team cohesion and efficiency have improved.
Unemployed 7%
Lack of growth opportunities within the company. Demoted from a supervisor roll to project engineering. Projects delayed. Morale dropped for a time. For me it had a positive effect. I was promoted. Work was transitioned over to China and my responsibilities were reduced. Less work = less people = more job security concern. More focus on current products and less on advanced design. Insufficient staff and resources to properly support my projects, leading to schedule delays, cut corners, and product performance issues.
April 2010 24
69%
43%
40%
21%
18%
Hire more design engineers 22%
Laid off
8%
Other
12%
April 2010 25
Actively 10%
64%
Passively 19%
Contact with peers through social networking sites Search firms/Headhunters Contacting vendors/suppliers Attend job fairs 5% 15%
28%
LinkedIn (N=232)
26%
Facebook (N=15)
Other
16%
N= number of mentions
April 2010 26
Yes 70%
No 30%
April 2010 27
Section IV Demographics
April 2010 28
How many people does your company employ and how many work as engineers?
Average number of people employed at a company: 690 Average number of engineers employed at a company: 393
Number of Employees Number of Engineers
55% 44%
24% 17%
25%
21% 6% 7%
< 100
101 -500
501 - 999
> 1,000
April 2010 29
% of respondents
Automotive Medical Aerospace Defense Systems Industrial Controls Communication Systems Instruments/Test Equipment Consumer Electronics Contract Manufacturing Semiconductors Computers/Peripherals Electronic Components Machine Tools Other
9% 9% 9% 6% 6% 5% 4% 3% 3% 3% 3% 2% 2% 36%
April 2010 30
Pacific NW
(WA,OR)
New England
(ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, CT)
3% $82,593
Mountain
(MT, ID, UT, WY, CO, NM)
Midwest
(MI, OH, KY, TN, IN, WI, IL, IA, MO, ND, SD, NE, KS)
7% $98,590 Mid-Atlantic
(NY, PA, NJ, DE, MD, WV, VA, D.C.)
Southwest
(CA, NV, AZ)
4% $96,524
36% $82,740
14% $91,403
Southeast
(NC, SC, GA, FL)
9% $96,204
7% $86,746
April 2010 31
55 - 64 28%
18 - 25 1% 26 - 34 8%
65+ 5%
6% 6%
April 2010 32
April 2010 33
<100
101-500
501-999
1,000+
April 2010 34
$8,465 $6,617
$96,679
$90,571
$72,707 $55,841
18-25**
26-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
65+
April 2010 35
$87,770 $70,135
April 2010 36
$97,303
<40
40-49
50-59
60+
April 2010 37
$13,091 $12,227
$83,903
$88,860
$91,334
$88,166
$95,551
$93,388
$99,652
<5
5 to 9
10 to 14
15 to 19
20 to 24
25 to 29
30+
April 2010 38
$11,000
$7,556
$5,534
$92,148
$87,930
$83,900
Extremely/Very Satisfied
Somewhat Satisfied
April 2010 39
$11,784
$8,137
$8,464
$5,788
$92,210
$90,171
$87,990
$87,733
Passively
Actively
April 2010 40
$9,789 $11,241 $4,705 $4,238 $76,235 $56,641 $79,811 $86,614 $98,498 $8,440
<5
6 to 10
11 to 15
16 to 20
> 20
April 2010 41
$9,725 $8,361
Software
Materials**
Electrical/ electronics
Mechanical
Electromechanical
Controls
Manufacturing
April 2010 42
$96,524
$17,413
$94,204
$12,366
$98,590
$6,762
$91,403
$6,862
$86,746
$7,790
$82,593
$9,268
$82,740
$8,374
April 2010 43
April 2010 44