I come from a mostly startup background. Before that (~5 years ago) I was a product designer in agencies. Over a 9 year career, I’ve ground and worked my way up the ranks. Mid level, senior, lead, and eventually director positions at these younger companies. I recently applied for a staff level role at a well respected, and global company. It would be the biggest company I’ve worked for, though honestly not huge by any means (DM for company info) I was down-leveled. To senior product designer. Which I was immediately disappointed by. I think I still am. But when we spoke salary they TC is equivalent, nay, greater than my leadership roles (it’s a relocation gig so I’ve had to use salary equivalency calculators). I want the mentorship. I want the strategy and process setting. I want to lead by my craft which is very advanced. But this role could be career jet fuel. Is salary all of it? Should I settle for anything less than a high-ranking IC position? Looking for thoughts. #design #interviews
I totally understand having put so many years of hard work into growing into your role you have now to then be offered a role that you outgrew years ago. Not all orgs have the same level of design maturity and I think different orgs have vastly different criteria for to determining levels. I also hear all the time about how companies will down level to set you up for success (which can be complete BS too). At the end of the day, if the work you’ll be getting to do is something that you’ll find enjoyable and there is a great career path and you know that you wont have to fight to get promoted, maybe it’s still a role worth considering?
Company size of big company vs startup?
Titles in design are garbage. You might be a Sr. Product Designer with 9 YOE, and a VP of Design at some startup could maybe have 3. I think the work you do, and speak about when you’re interviewing, does more to show your experience than your title. If the pay is good, the work is interesting, and the experience will help open doors for you in the future, you should be good!
I just think with this down leveling I can probably get a similar title with more pay at a company with bigger namesake
For more pay
Big titles at very small startup usually mean nothing.
^ This. Ask me how i know.
Director position at startup doesn’t not equal director at FAANG
Levels are weird, and going from startup or agency to big tech is going to have a big difference. At a big company it's almost a given you're going to lose some scope and influence and the level will reflect that. However, a senior designer at big tech likely has the same bar as a staff or principal at a smaller company. It's also considered "terminal" in that it's as high as most people will reasonably go, and getting to the next level (typically level 5-> 6) is incredibly difficult and also increases expectations greatly. It's why you'll see some seniors with 5 YoE and others with 20. Depending on the company, it may unlock future opportunities for leadership when you leave. But if you were to continue climbing at smaller companies, it will be harder to enter the ranks of big tech because it's tremendously easier to come in as a senior than a staff or higher. All depends on what you are looking for in your career. I'm in a similar spot to you, feel free to dm
TC and impact of work > titles. Senior means so much across different companies, if you don’t come from big tech then it’s very difficult to get a staff role. It’s definitely possible, but if it’s a company you love then it’s worth it imo.
Right now I’m deciding between 3 offers: Senior, Lead, Staff titles. I’m probably taking the senior role because the TC is slightly higher, it’s a company I really want to work at, and the team would be a huge growth opportunity for me.
Interested in this topic as well.
I was given a management title at my last job... sure I was a team of one and only managing myself, but a manager none the less. Now I hold a senior product design title at an established tech company that pays a lot more. Titles are meaningless and I've noticed that they don't always match the skill level or experience, sometimes it's just flat out politics. All that matters is that the pay fits your needs, you have room to grow, and the work is interesting enough to keep things interesting.
When I was at Google, all my design mangers (L6, not senior design manager) were head of design at pretty well known companies, they lead a design team size of 40-60. I’ve seen VP of designs at smaller companies join Google as L4. (L5 is senior product designer) But the most important thing is that they all join. I think a mindset switch might be helpful in this case. Otherwise, you’re just likely to experience another major downlevel when you try the FAANG level companies.
This is a great response. May I ask what is the avg YOE of your managers and if the position of Head of design actually helped the designers to get an L6 irrespective of their YOE, which is a pretty good decent position
TC? Based on your experience you should get a high level Ic rank. However, bigger companies have higher bar it seems like. If you are not satisfied, I say talk to your manager about your goals and how you want to get there.
This. You might be a director level at a smaller, earlier stage startup. A bigger pond means titles shift. I wouldn’t worry about title and I’d focus on what skills and connections you can make in the new role, what it can do to round out your experience and resume, and of course what the compensation is.