What Is an Operations Engineer, and How Do I Become One?

Many large corporations have complex systems that work together, such as infrastructure and technical systems. An operations engineer helps ensure all these systems are working as intended. In addition, operations engineers may design new workflows and procedures to improve efficiency and conduct training. 

If this sounds like an exciting role, continue reading to learn about becoming an operations engineer, including duties, responsibilities, potential salary, and more. 

Read more: What Is an Operations Manager? A Career Guide

What do operations engineers do?

As an operations engineer, you specialize in industrial processes, systems, and equipment. You oversee and help optimize a company’s systems' operational processes. You may design more efficient workflows, enhance equipment operations, optimize resource usage, handle machine repairs and upgrades, or develop and deliver training, among other tasks. 

Your primary objective as an operations engineer is to increase organizational productivity and reduce excess time, energy, and material use.

Duties and responsibilities of an operations engineer

With the overarching goals of improving efficiency and reducing waste, an operations engineer understandably has a broad range of duties and responsibilities. 

This role requires a high level of technical skill. Some typical duties you'll perform include:

• Installing and racking cable equipment

• Creating support tickets

• Maintaining and repairing the corporate network infrastructure

• Initiating telephone system hardware and cabling changes

• Documenting operation procedures

• Evaluating operating systems

• Managing corporate data security 

This role may also go beyond technical responsibilities, as you may also have some managerial and budgetary functions. These can include: 

• Supervising personnel 

• Managing project costs, schedule, and technical performance 

• Leading operations, outages, and safety meetings 

• Reducing labor upkeep requirements by developing new processes 

• Leading implementation teams for upgrades and migrations

Where do operations engineers work?

Operations engineers can work in various industries. Of the 327,300 industrial engineer jobs in the US in 2022 (a category that includes operations engineers), the industries hiring the most industrial engineers are as follows, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) [1]:

• Transportation equipment manufacturing

• Computer and electronic product manufacturing

• Professional, scientific, and technical services

• Machinery manufacturing

• Fabricated metal product manufacturing 

Career outlook for an operations engineer

The BLS estimates a job growth rate of 12 percent from 2022 through 2032 for all industrial engineers [2]. This data demonstrates that the profession is growing much faster than the average across other US occupations, showing that it is an in-demand career path [2]. 

Operations engineer salary

According to Glassdoor, the estimated total pay for an operations engineer in the US is $115,171 per year [3]. This figure includes an average base salary of $91,334 and $23,838 in additional pay. Additional pay may represent profit-sharing, commissions, or bonuses. Keep in mind your salary may be influenced by factors like years of experience, industry, education level, and location.

Here is a breakdown of your base salary depending on years of experience [3]:

• 0-1 years: $73,527

• 1-3 years: $80,838

• 4-6 years: $86,691

• 7-9 years: $91,735

• 15+ years: $116,761

Additionally, if you’re location fluid, you can maximize your earnings by choosing an area with a higher average salary due to the demand for this role. Remember to check the cost of living to ensure the extra salary won’t be consumed by higher living costs. 

For an operations engineer, the average salary by state has a significant $52,251 gap between the lowest and highest average pay [4]. According to research from Zippia, the lowest is Hawaii at $61,114, while the highest is California at $113,365 [4].

How to become an operations engineer

Landing a job as an operations engineer generally requires a bachelor’s degree and training. You can also increase your marketability and earning potential with certifications. While your path may vary, the typical path to becoming an operations engineer follows these steps. 

1. Study for a degree.

According to Zippia research, 61.6 percent of all operations engineers at the job site surveyed had at least a bachelor’s degree [5]. Employers typically seek operations engineers with a bachelor’s or advanced degrees in computer science or industrial, mechanical, or electrical engineering. 

2. Increase your skills.

After earning your degree, you’ll spend an average of four to six years building relevant work experience in related roles, such as a maintenance technician or systems administrator [5]. Completing an internship can also help you gain the practical experience needed. 

After getting experience in a lower-level role and moving on to becoming an operations engineer, you’ll spend an average of one to two years completing further on-the-job training [5]. This training offers an opportunity to hone your skills to meet specific job functions. In addition to developing solid critical thinking skills, other skills you’ll want to focus on while learning on the job include:

• Human systems integration

• Linux

• VMware

• Standard virtualization software

• Software development processes

• Communication

• Organization

• Python

• Cloud

• Amazon Web Services

• Troubleshooting

Read more: Your Guide to System Administration Degrees

3. Get a professional license. 

Some employers may require a professional engineering license. Every state requires at least four years of qualifying engineering experience before applying for the licensing exam [6]. However, some states have specific licensing requirements for engineers, so check with your local licensing board for more information on this. 

4. Study for a certification or undertake additional training.

Certifications are not always necessary to land a role as an operations engineer, but they may help you on your path. Below are some certifications and certificates to consider: 

• OSHA Safety certificate: Depending on your career goals, you can choose between OSHA construction, OSHA general industry, or HAZWOPER certificates. 

• Engineer in Training (EIT) certification: This certificate shows you’ve attained the knowledge needed to pass the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam and are on the path to becoming a fully licensed engineer. 

• Certified Chemical Engineer certification: If you plan to work in an industry that handles industrial chemicals, a certification in chemical engineering could be helpful. This certification recognizes you’ve attained a basic level of education or experience and participated in professional career development and continuing education in the last one to three years.

• CCNP Service Provider certification: Because some operations engineers may also work with IT, depending on the organization and the specialization of the role, a CCNP Service Provider certification may align with your career goals. This certification proves your understanding of core architecture, services, networking, automation, quality of service (QoS), security, and network assurance.

Explore career advancement options.

As an operations engineer, you’ll have many career options. You can pursue other roles as you gain experience at your organization or other organizations. Before reaching management level, you can take on a handful of intermediate roles related to the operations engineer position, such as:

• Project manager

• Senior manufacturing engineer

• Mechanical engineer

• Chief engineer

As you advance, you can also pursue related management positions. Some roles to consider include:

• Operations manager

• IT director

• Engineering director

• Director of plant operations

Learn more about being an operations engineer.

Operations engineers work across various fields to keep complex systems and processes working efficiently. If you want an in-demand role that lets you use your problem-solving skills to continually improve complex systems, a career in operations engineering may be perfect. 

Get a better feel for this role with Operations Research: Models and Applications from National Taiwan University or Operations Management: Organizations and Analysis, offered by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Both courses, available on Coursera, can help you grow your understanding and abilities in preparation for taking on this job. The University of Pennsylvania’s Operations Analytics course can help you further your data analysis skills to set yourself up for success.