One thing that can be added - is this person working in a regulated industry? For instance, does your company have to follow a controlled design, manufacturing

One thing that can be added - is this person working in a regulated industry? For instance, does your company have to follow a controlled design, manufacturing and verification process and have things documented properly along the way? Do you have to adhere to industry standard not because it's a good practice but because the law requires it? If not, I would say the work is likely not engineering. You can use Auto-CAD tool but there is a difference between 3D printing a spoon and designing a bridge. Likewise, just because one uses programming tools, it doesn't mean that the work is engineering.