Career

Engineering Manager vs Staff Engineer - which path to choose?

Anna Mueller

11 months ago

130

I'm a Senior SDE (7 YOE) at a mid-size company and at a crossroads. My company offers both IC and management tracks.

EM path: Lead a team of 8-10, more people management, less coding
Staff path: Stay technical, influence architecture, mentor others

I enjoy both coding and mentoring. But I've heard that once you go into management, it's hard to come back to IC.

Senior folks - which path did you choose and do you regret it?

engineering-managerstaff-engineercareer-pathsenior

Comments (3)

Rashi Deshpande8 months ago

I went from Senior Dev to Engineering Manager. Initial months were tough with less coding, but the leadership skills I've developed are invaluable. And it's not true that you can't go back to IC; a colleague of mine did just that!

Lakshay Desai11 months ago

I was in a similar position a few years back. Chose the Staff Engineer path because I couldn't imagine giving up coding entirely. I love being deep in the tech stack and influencing major projects. No regrets so far!

Shruti Gill11 months ago

Honestly, the choice really depends on your long-term goals. If you see yourself aspiring to higher-level leadership roles, EM might be the way. If tech excites you and you want to be at the forefront of innovation, Staff might fit better.