Career Blueprint

Credit regional manager→Engineering Manager

⏱ 15 months•4 years experience•2 current skills

🧱Phase 1

Foundation

4 months

Skills to Develop

Transition from IC mindset to multiplier mindset1:1 meeting frameworks & coaching techniquesAgile/Scrum facilitation (beyond ceremonies)Hiring & structured interviewingPerformance management & feedback delivery

Resources

📚 The Manager's Path by Camille Fournier
📚 Radical Candor by Kim Scott
🔨 Shadow an experienced EM for 2+ weeks
🔨 Practice structured behavioral interviews

🏁 Milestone

Run effective 1:1s with direct reports and deliver one difficult feedback conversation well

⚡Phase 2

Execution

6 months

Skills to Develop

Roadmap planning & cross-team coordinationTeam health metrics & engagementTechnical debt negotiation with productConflict resolution & mediationBudget & resource allocation

Resources

📚 An Elegant Puzzle by Will Larson
🔨 Lead a team through a full planning cycle (quarter/half)
📚 High Output Management by Andy Grove
👥 Rands Leadership Slack community

🏁 Milestone

Ship a major project on time while maintaining team health scores above baseline

👑Phase 3

Authority

5 months

Skills to Develop

Organizational design & team topologyExecutive presence & stakeholder managementEngineering culture & values definitionCross-functional leadership (PM, Design, Data)Strategic hiring & employer branding

Resources

📚 Team Topologies by Skelton & Pais
🔨 Write about engineering management publicly
👥 Mentor aspiring engineering managers
👥 LeadDev conference talks & community

🏁 Milestone

Your team is a talent magnet — people request to join, attrition is low, output is high

🎯

Ready to prove it?

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