| I made the switch from Engineering to Engineering Management about 4 years ago. Given where I was at the time I think it was a good career move and I feel like I've learned a lot including many things about being a good Engineer I learned from the manager perspective. I've recently made it to the 'manager of managers' position and am doing well generally. The problem I'm struggling with is that I don't love it nearly as much as I loved Engineering. I spend all of my days managing stakeholders, engaged in politics and generally not having much of an idea if my team's are successful because of or in spite of my leadership. I'm exhausted at the end of every day in a way that I never was as an Engineer and at 37 with a young family I feel like this energy sapping slog takes away from my ability to be a good dad. I also can't see the next 25 years being that much fun from my current position. So I'm considering switching back. I have 12 or so years as an engineer and have done well on that track prior to switching. Anyone have any good anecdotes positive or negative on the switch back to front like engineering from the manager track after a few years? Or those that didn't and pushed through some kind of inflection point into senior leadership that was easier than middle management? Thanks! |
That aside, it is a tougher transition back to IC than I thought it would be. My new manager asks what I’d do, management wise, sometimes, but I don’t like being put in that position: there’s a reason I left management. Also, even though I wrote code frequently on my own time and contributed to designs, that’s not the same as being in the thick of it, and my skills deteriorated noticeably. That’s a hard thing to manage.