From Developer to Engineering Manager: A Practical Beginner's Guide

Making the transition from developer to engineering manager is a significant step in the career path of any software engineer. Whether driven by the desire for greater impact, mentorship, or influence over team processes and products, this shift is deeply rooted in both people management and systems oversight. This guide is designed for developers who are either considering or have recently embarked on a management role. Here, you’ll find essential insights into the responsibilities of an engineering manager, key skills to cultivate, a structured 30–60–90 day plan, strategies for hiring and delivery, tips for conducting effective one-on-ones, and a practical checklist to support your journey.

Understand the Role: What an Engineering Manager Actually Does

An engineering manager is primarily accountable for cultivating a healthy and productive team that meets organizational goals. This involves balancing multiple aspects of team dynamics, project flow, and technical direction.

Core Responsibilities

• People Management: Hiring, coaching, performance reviews, fostering career growth, and retention.
• Delivery Management: Prioritizing tasks, removing obstacles, ensuring reliability, and coordinating across teams.
• Process Improvement: Establishing and refining routines such as planning, retrospectives, and code reviews.
• Technical Vision: Guiding discussions around architecture, making trade-offs, and prioritizing technical debt without solely executing tasks.

Day-to-Day Activities

• Conducting regular 1:1s with team members and stakeholders.
• Participating in planning and prioritization meetings (sprints, roadmaps).
• Addressing blockers and production incidents.
• Engaging in design reviews and architectural conversations.
• Leading hiring efforts and interviews.

Differences from Tech Lead and Staff Engineer

The essential distinction lies in the fact that while Tech Leads and Staff Engineers determine technical decisions, Engineering Managers create an environment that facilitates effective decision-making.

For a more in-depth understanding of management dynamics, Camille Fournier’s The Manager’s Path is a highly recommended resource: The Manager’s Path.

Skills to Develop: Soft Skills and Technical Knowledge

Successfully transitioning into an Engineering Manager role requires honing both interpersonal skills and maintaining technical knowledge.

Essential Soft Skills

• Communication: Provide concise updates and clarify expectations.
• Empathy and Active Listening: Grasp team members’ motivations and constraints.
• Feedback and Coaching: Deliver regular, actionable feedback.
• Delegation: Shift from managing tasks to empowering others.
• Conflict Resolution: Promote constructive discussions focusing on systemic issues.

Key Management Practices

• One-on-Ones: Build trust beyond mere status updates.
• Performance Conversations: Regular feedback with structured reviews.
• Goal Setting: Align team objectives with broader company goals.
• Hiring: Implement structured interviewing and inclusive practices—explore Google’s evidence-based techniques at Google re:Work.

Important Technical Skills

• Architectural Thinking: Evaluate and challenge design concepts.
• Metrics Literacy: Understand DORA metrics from Accelerate: Accelerate.
• Cloud and Infrastructure Basics: Familiarize yourself with CI/CD and deployment processes.
• Domain Knowledge: Stay knowledgeable enough to make informed decisions.

For resources aimed at improving technical presentations: Creating Engaging Technical Presentations.

First 90 Days: A Practical 30–60–90 Day Plan

Structuring your first 90 days can help establish credibility and drive improvements.

Days 0–30: Listen and Learn

• Schedule introductory 1:1s with each direct report to build trust.
• Meet cross-functional stakeholders like Product, Design, and QA.
• Assess ongoing projects and team workflows.
• Conduct skip-level meetings for upward feedback.

Goals: Complete 1:1s and identify key areas for improvement.

Days 30–60: Stabilize and Experiment

• Implement 1–3 impactful, low-effort changes (e.g., improve PR review processes).
• Test adjustments, such as standup formats or planning rhythms.
• Begin drafting team quarterly goals with measurable success metrics.

Days 60–90: Execute and Measure

• Scale successful pilot changes across the team.
• Finalize quarterly goals in alignment with stakeholder expectations.
• Begin structured interviews if hiring is necessary.

Measurable Goals: Aim to reduce PR review times or improve deployment success rates.

Hiring and Building a Team

When to Hire vs. Grow Internally

Hire when you lack specific skills, or grow internally when mentorship is feasible.

Writing Effective Job Descriptions

• Clearly outline expectations and impacts of the role.
• Differentiate between required and desirable skills.

Conducting Effective Interviews

• Utilize structured interviews to minimize bias.
• Incorporate diverse interview panels to gain multiple perspectives.

Onboarding New Hires

• Create a 30–60–90 day onboarding plan.
• Assign mentors and define initial deliverables.

Sample Hiring Scorecard Fields

• Problem-solving and coding.
• System design and architecture.
• Collaboration and communication.
• Cultural fit and values alignment.

Managing Delivery and Technical Strategy

Prioritization Frameworks

Employ methodologies like RICE or Impact vs. Effort matrices to prioritize tasks effectively.

Balancing Technical Debt with Feature Development

Allocate a predictable portion of capacity to manage technical debt continually.

Collaborating with Product and Design

Establish joint goals and maintain clear expectations to minimize scope changes.

Using Metrics for Decision Making

Track DORA metrics to inform and measure team performance trends over time.

For architectural strategies, refer to these guides: Monorepo vs Multi-repo Strategies and Ports and Adapters Pattern.

One-on-Ones, Performance Reviews, and Career Development

Effective 1:1 Structure

A consistent 1:1 agenda promotes trust.

• Personal check-in (5 min)
• Review progress on goals (10 min)
• Discuss blockers (10 min)
• Explore career development (10 min)
• Outline action items (5 min)

Performance Reviews

• Gather feedback from various sources and standardize expectations through calibration meetings.

Growth Plans and Ladders

• Define competencies for each level and create actionable milestones.
• Facilitate stretch assignments and mentorship opportunities.

Addressing Underperformance

• Diagnose causes, set improvement plans with measurable targets, and document everything for accountability.

Common Challenges and Pitfalls

• Micromanagement vs. Absentee Management: Establish outcomes with regular guidance rather than constant oversight.
• Meeting Overload: Schedule focus periods and empower team leads to manage day-to-day meetings.
• Delegation Failures: Recognize capable team members and assign ownership of tasks with clear success metrics.
• Burnout from Technical Debt: Ensure time for personal development and technical engagement.

Actionable Checklist and Templates

Checklist for New Managers

• Schedule 1:1s with all direct reports.
• Engage with key stakeholders.
• Review active projects and team health.
• Set 30–60–90 goals for transparency.
• Create or update the hiring plan.

Template: 1:1 Agenda

1:1 Agenda
- Personal (how are you?)
- Wins since last 1:1
- Progress vs goals
- Blockers / requests for help
- Feedback for manager
- Career & development discussion
- Actions & owner

Template: New Hire 30–60–90

New-hire 30–60–90
Week 1:
- Access, setup, meet team, read docs
- Fix a small bug and make a PR
Month 1:
- Deliver a small feature end-to-end with a mentor
- Gain ownership of a small component
Month 3:
- Own a component area and onboard others
- Ship at least one cross-team improvement

Career Progression and Compensation Expectations

Typical Ladder Individual Contributor → Tech Lead / Staff Engineer → Engineering Manager → Senior EM → Director → VP.

Promotion Criteria Documented impact, consistent delivery, and people development are crucial metrics for promotions.

Negotiation Tips Understand compensation benchmarks and prepare measurable impact examples when discussing salary.

Resources for Continued Learning

• The Manager’s Path by Camille Fournier: The Manager’s Path
• Google’s re:Work: Google re:Work
• Accelerate for insights on delivery metrics: Accelerate

Engage with community resources and seek mentorship from experienced managers to enhance your leadership journey.

Conclusion

In summary, transitioning from developer to engineering manager entails adopting a people-first focus, delivering measurable improvements, and retaining technical expertise. Start integrating these practices by conducting regular 1:1s, crafting a personal 30–60–90 day plan, and exploring leadership opportunities within your current role.

For those interested in sharing their transition experiences or providing case studies, consider submitting a post: Submit Guest Post.

References & Further Reading

• Camille Fournier, The Manager’s Path: The Manager’s Path
• Google re:Work: Google re:Work
• Accelerate (DORA metrics): Accelerate
• Creating Engaging Technical Presentations: Creating Engaging Technical Presentations
• Monorepo vs Multi-repo Strategies: Monorepo vs Multi-repo Strategies
• Ports and Adapters Pattern: Ports and Adapters Pattern
• Container Networking: Container Networking
• Building Home Lab: Building Home Lab

If you found this guide helpful, consider bookmarking it and sharing it with colleagues. Your insights can inspire others on their management journey.