Tech IndustrySep 12, 2018
Applecho Chang

Staff/Principal Eng —> Non-Entry Level EM

Is it possible to switch directly from being a staff/principal engineer to being an engineering manager above the entry level for managers? E.g.: Facebook E6 —> M1 Google L6 SWE —> L6 EM Amazon L7 SDE —> L7 SDM Apple ICT5 —> M2 Etc. Is it easier to make this switch at some companies rather than others? TC 195k / 1.0 YOE

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Google आपका दोस्त Sep 12, 2018

Everything is possible. You should think about how probable is that.

Apple cho Chang OP Sep 12, 2018

So u have to switch from SWE to EM at L5 instead of at a higher level?

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reilly_r Sep 12, 2018

If you have the people management and leadership skills it should be possible. If you don’t have them...

Google Huhf13 Sep 12, 2018

Yes. But at one YOE, how is this a concern?

Apple cho Chang OP Sep 12, 2018

I’ve seen posts about people getting fb E6 offers with 8+ YOE even if they’re not at the staff/principal level in their current company, and I’m wondering whether accepting such an offer would be a good idea if they aspire to become an M1, or whether they’ve “gone too far” on the engineering track and would have to start from scratch at M0 if they wanna switch to management. Since u said yes, could u please elaborate on ur experience or the experience of anyone u know on making this kind of switch?

Uber uSnowflake Sep 12, 2018

If you don't have people management experience I would say it's probably hard to switch into an entry level management job (by switching companies) let alone an above entry level one

Apple cho Chang OP Sep 12, 2018

I meant within the same company, switching from eng to management; not switching companies. Within a company is it possible?

Uber uSnowflake Sep 13, 2018

I guess I didn't really understand your question. Normally when you switch from an engineering track to a management track it would be a sideways move whereby your pay grade would not change. This means that if, for example, you're staff and that maps to Sr. Manager, then that's what your would get. However I think nobody in their sane mind would give you the management scope of a Sr. Manager. What would topical happen is your management scope would be that of an entry level manager (maybe even less if you're expected to get mentorship) and you'd be expected to make up for it by doing some of the staff level technical work.