What I learned going from engineer to manager in one year

A year ago, all engineers at ShopBack reported directly to the chief technology officer. We had no engineering managers (EMs) and team leads. In other words, there was no structure. Recognizing this as an emerging issue for a fast-growing startup, we hired a vice president of engineering to put a proper structure in place.

He introduced the creation of EMs, which was a paradigm shift that had a significant impact on the engineering team. We grew from:

• Zero to seven EMs
• One to three engineering centers
• 15 to more than 50 engineers

The biggest game changer for me was when I switched roles from senior engineer to EM within a week. In this post, I would like to share some of the lessons I learned over the first year of transition, especially what I wished I understood before I started down the path of management.

When not to switch from technical to management

Don’t do it if you consider it as a promotion. At ShopBack, track changes don’t come with compensation or benefit changes, so realistically speaking, there is no reason to see it as a promotion.

But for many tech companies I have spoken to, management is a parallel track to being a technical individual contributor. As an individual contributor, your core responsibility is your code. As an EM, your core responsibility is your people.

No matter how much of a rock star you are at coding, you will return to junior level in the department of management. The drop in efficiency and effectiveness is actually most pronounced if you feel super productive as an individual contributor.

No one wants to work for a manager who wants to do everything except to become a better manager, so please don’t inflict that pain on your team.

Having the right motivation plays a huge part in any switch in responsibilities, and becoming an EM is no different. This helps you push through the tough adjustment phase. No one wants to work for a manager who wants to do everything except to become a better manager, so please don’t inflict that pain on your team.

Also, don’t do it if you want to micromanage or control your team members or want the authority to correct bad behavior. There are other ways to solve that problem that don’t involve switching your day-to-day work entirely.

Feedback is a gift, and sharing it makes a world of difference. The mindset of improving how your team functions, rather than giving up and trying to do everything yourself, is a key trait of a leader and team player.

Having a fancy job title doesn’t make you a leader, and being the manager can in some ways make it harder to lead as people tend to build some distance between themselves and their managers.

When to consider the switch

If removing blockers, helping others to grow, building alignment across cross-functional teams, and resolving conflict are more fulfilling for you than writing code and solving technical challenges, then the management track is something you might enjoy. Removing yourself from the critical engineering path allows you to focus on rallying the troops to chase big hairy audacious goals for the business or product.

As a former co-founder, I’ve always had an interest in building teams and improving processes. Being an early engineer, I participated in the design of many of our systems, built decent rapport with most stakeholders, and had a good grasp of our business challenges. I saw switching as the best way to help improve the organization.

If you’re still keen on exploring the position after all that, you’ll need to make a plan. Now is a great time to start enjoying planning because you’ll soon be making more plans than you ever thought possible. Your plan is critical for you to understand your own performance. Without coding, you lose the feedback loop that has powered your entire career, and your transition plan helps to somehow replace it.

Establishing your priorities

Finding mentors

Do one-on-ones regularly

Set expectations with stakeholders and direct reports

Keep a daily journal

Keep on learning, but always have fun as well