Pls share ur thoughts
10 replies (most recent on top)
@af neither. Technology moves too fast and mastering one for your current job in cisco, was likely outdated 5 years ago.
Early in career and no saving. Engineer, if you invest correctly (401k, Roth and etc...) and build enough money to never have to work and/or close to it. Then, manager and/or sales is the way to go. You will have more visibility (aka, they know if you are proving value). But, the money is great. I invested and became a multimillionaire at a grade 10 engineer. Retired at 60. Sole provider. Layoffs force friends into sales and management. They are making bank.
Maybe 1 out of 10 people are too valuable to let go. 9 out of 10 it's who you know; how good of a politician, Dir/VP rear kisser, you are. I've been both IC and manager, not sure it makes much difference if you're the 9 out of 10.
Best to be Tamilian at Cisco you will be safe from layoffs under Tamil manager just see around lol
Ask a better question.
Until you do, the answer is 'neither because you'd fail at both'
if you are join your friends in higher places(Dir/VP etc), then mgr is good, Otherwise you will be demoted to IC in next LR cycle to replace your mgr position with buddy of higher place Dir/VP, you will end up a loser in your career with no fault of yours.
Navigating bureaucracy is a necessary evil as long as there are tons of layers of human decision makers around. But engineering is the backbone of actually making all of those decisions come to life.
both engineering and management is bearing the weight of tech layoffs
difference is, most tech companies are still hiring engineers while the retreat from excessive management seems permanent
as an engineer, your skills are to know how to wield a particular technology
as a manager, your skill is knowing how to navigate Cisco bureaucracy
which skillset do you think has a better chance in today's market?
Both have pros and cons:
Engineer: free, independent thinker and can focus on self growth more. However, visibility and income based growth is as good as what a manager provides.
Manager: Ability to create more jobs can be gratifying, but need to put up with a lot of politics which can be detrimental to those who are technically inclined.
Why a manager, no one wants you again after layoffs , if you have nothing to offer, a manager isn’t bad idea
Engineer always able to find next job