Site Reliability Engineer (SRE) Salary

Site Reliability Engineer Job Description

Site Reliability Engineers (SRE) combine software architecture with system operations. They have operations skills and oversee the reliability of systems and products for optimal functioning. This combination reduces the need for organizations to rely on both development and operations teams, streamlining the entire process. SREs use service-level agreements that define the system reliability needs of the service. When this budget is met, the site reliability engineer creates and implements new launches. If the error budget is over the defined reliability needs, the SRE works to reduce the errors before additional launches are allowed, increasing the overall performance of the system. They also develop code that addresses any problems within the system, which improves operational efficiency and performance.

Site reliability engineers may work closely with development teams or on their own, depending on the organization. An ideal candidate has professional-level programming skills and an in-depth knowledge of programming languages. The ability to analyze and organize information is also beneficial. Since SREs work with other teams, communication and teamwork skills are a must. While site reliability engineering is a relatively new concept, the benefits for organizations are numerous. These benefits are creating a high demand for SREs, who are also considered computer network architects due to their designing and implementing computer and cloud systems. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the projected job growth for site reliability engineers will reach 9% from 2014 to 2024. Many of these positions are with organizations of all sizes, ranging from Google and Walmart to smaller entities.