Key Skills For A Software Engineering Manager At A Fortune 10 Tech Company
Sara, a Software Engineering Manager, identifies four crucial skill sets: a strong technical foundation ("you've really gotta know the tools of your profession"), business acumen ("understand what does it mean that it's a business"), domain expertise, and robust people skills, emphasizing the importance of a solid base before ascending a career ladder to avoid feeling "vertigo" from insufficient skills. This multifaceted approach, built over many years of diverse experience, is key to success in technical management.
Technical Proficiency, Business Acumen, Industry Knowledge, Management Skills, Career Progression
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Sara Rahimian
Software Engineering Manager
Fortune 10 Tech Company
University of California, Berkeley
NA
Computer Science, Engineering - Electrical
Healthcare, Medical & Wellness, Technology
Product / Service / Software Development and Management
Honors Student, Immigrant, Greek Life Member
Video Highlights
1. Technical Proficiency: A strong grasp of software engineering principles and tools is crucial. While specific languages and frameworks change, a foundational understanding of technology and problem-solving remains essential.
2. Business Acumen: Understanding business principles, metrics, and performance indicators is key to aligning technical work with business goals. This includes translating technical problems into business-relevant terms and making informed decisions.
3. People Skills and Management: Effective communication, team building, and leadership skills are vital for managing teams, fostering collaboration, and creating a positive work environment. This includes understanding organizational dynamics and psychological safety
Transcript
What skills are most important for a job like yours?
I work in technical engineering management. The first critical layer of skills is knowing your technology and your technical problem-solving.
I'm rarely the subject matter expert on specific programming languages or frameworks, as things change and we use many different tools. However, I understand conceptually what they are, which tool applies where, and where scaling problems might arise. So, the first skill is knowing the tools of your profession.
The second is a level of business acumen. You need to understand what it means to be a business, what metrics and performance indicators are, and how to translate problems and metrics so they relate.
The third is understanding the domain and industry you're in. You need to connect domain problems with business opportunities to make informed bets on what will work. Otherwise, teams and projects can be canceled due to a lack of alignment and judgment.
The last skill is people skills, including management theory, organizational psychology, and how to build culture and psychological safety. These four aspects are crucial.
It takes many years of experience to develop these skills; you can't acquire them all at once. When I meet new people in their careers, I advise them to start with foundational skills. If you're in engineering, understand the principles of your technology space. Then, learn business principles like microeconomics, macroeconomics, and accounting.
From there, you can grow rapidly. Without that foundation, people can grow and then feel a sense of vertigo because their skills don't fully support their position. This can lead to inadvertent trouble, as organizations sometimes move people to places they aren't ready for, causing stress and unhealthy self-preservation behaviors.