Some info about career progression at Tofugu. As of November 9, 2022 4:21 PM (PST) it’s a bit of a rough draft, with short answers and not a lot of detail. As we run into things and learn, we’ll fill it out with more depth (and add more Q&As, too).
Tofugu’s career tracks are:
Learn more in Career Tracks at Tofugu.
The two main career tracks at Tofugu are Professional and Management. Our goal is for both career tracks to pretty much equal in terms of compensation. We don’t want “becoming a manager” to be the only way to move up the proverbial career ladder. Not everyone is going to be good at management, so we want to make sure everyone has more opportunity to do the things they’ll excel at.
Although there may be some exceptions, P3's compensation is generally equal to M1's (if they are the equivalent manager-version of the role). P4 is equal to M2, P5 equal to M3, etc. The responsibilities are different, and the work different, but the pay mostly stays in line with each other.
There will be Professional track roles that get paid higher than Manager track roles—and vice versa. It all comes down to the risk and responsibility you manage and your impact on the organization. There are many ways to do that.
If you’re an independent contributor in the professional career track, you may think to yourself: “I want to be a manager.” But, it’s important to ask yourself why. Is it to make more money? Tofugu’s dual career track means you can make equivalent compensation in a lot of cases, even if you remain in a professional track. Or, do you want to become a manager because you have a passion for helping people to be the best they can be in their career (including helping them to get better than you at everything)?
If you find that the latter is calling to you, let your manager, or the right person in leadership, know! There’s no guarantee, and there are a limited number of management positions (compared to professional and support positions, at least), so it’s unlikely there will be any kind of opportunity right away, or at all. But, it’s important to talk about it so we can look ahead.
Not everyone’s cut out to be a manager. If you’ve been switched to the management career track, but find you excel (and enjoy) doing the work, please talk to the right person to explain your situation and to come up with a plan.