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by mattgreenrocks
350 days ago
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> it started 8 months after accepting a role shift from engineering into management. I was cautiously excited initially, but it just soured very quickly. Thanks for the edit that added this. Very similar experience as this. It's BS that IC ladders top out at quasi-management roles, but perhaps part of the issue is believing that professional growth is as tidy as a FAANG career ladder (since most companies just copy them wholesale), and that not reaching those rungs reflects on me in any way. It feels a bit taboo to say, but I believe not everyone can flex into management easily, even part-time. I'm alright at it, but it clearly isn't long-term sustainable. |
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First of all, there ARE more steps on top of the IC ladder. They are really really exclusive though in our industry. A large company needs thousands of managers, but only a dozen or so those positions. Half those people are really smooth talkers, and the other half are truly remarkable human beings. You can set it as a challenge to yourself to shadow and follow in that direction. It might take you another 10 or 20 years and it might never happen.
The reason I don't view it as BS is because there is a limit on the amount of value a single person can generate. At the end of the day "managers" are viewed as force multipliers. Their job is to direct and control the output of 10 people. A great manager can 2x or 3x the productivity of their team compared to just 10 aimless people with no accountability or structure. Paying that person 2x or 4x is justified. Your entire career in management, from M1 -> CEO is all about trying to convince the one above you that you are a bigger force multiplier than others in your position. That's basically your job.
As an IC, you need to be someone who has had a track record of founding and delivering multiple highly profitable products/business/features/etc. Otherwise, you did, in fact, hit a ceiling of sorts.
From FAANG prospective, for an IC there is a sweet spot between their technical seniority, output vs burnout, and their compensation expectations/asks.