In a recent InfoQ virtual panel, Ben Linders, InfoQ editor and independent consultant, explored the topic of "Leading Tech People or Remaining a Software Engineer: What to Choose?" The panelists included Shawna Martell, senior staff engineer at Carta, Peter Gillard-Moss, senior engineering manager at DeepL, and Brittany Woods, senior engineering manager at The LEGO Group.
Sooner or later, software engineers reach a point in their careers where they can move into management positions. These could be tech lead positions, team leader positions, development managers, (senior) architect positions, staff plus engineer positions, or other positions where they become responsible for managing tech people. One question senior tech people ask themselves is: Should I go into management, or do I want to stay in a tech position?
Going into a management position feels like leaving tech, where you must stop doing what you're good at and happy doing. It can feel uncomfortable making a move to management. It will impact your relationships with your colleagues, other engineers, and the managers in your company. As an engineer, this can make you question whether you should do it or stay in your tech role.
The key takeaways included:
- Software engineers may need to decide whether to enter management or stay in a tech position.
- Good communication abilities, experience building relationships, knowing how to design something, and being able to solve problems are some of the skills you can reuse in your management position.
- To foster high-performing teams, give them time and space to do their work, trust them, and be transparent by sharing what you have.
- In a staff-plus position, you can combine engineering and people management responsibilities, remain involved in deep technical issues and problem-solving, and drive vision and strategy.
- If you need to do tech work while in a management position, you can spend time with tech engineers, do personal tech projects, or consider moving back to a tech position.
This content is an excerpt from a recent InfoQ article by Ben Linders, "Leading Tech People or Remaining a Software Engineer: What to Choose?".
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