5 Engineering Manager Archetypes - patkua.com

View the role of the Engineering Manager as one of five different archetypes: The Tech Lead EM, Team Lead EM, Delivery EM, Product EM and the Lead of Leads EM.

You find the previous four archetypes at a team level, leading a group of 3-8 people. What makes this 5th archetype different is that they lead a much larger group of 9-30 people. The larger the group size, the less sustainable it is for one person to lead individuals and manage work. Thus the Lead of Leads EM leads a group of people, each themselves acting in a leadership role.

The Lead of Leads EM appears more often in larger organisations with a focus on maximising the effectiveness of a group of teams. 

The Lead of Leads EM is an evolution of one of the other EM archetypes. Yet it is still often labelled as an “Engineering Manager”. This archetype requires more experience and owns a greater set of responsibilities. Some organisations use a different name for this archetype. Some may use the title “Senior Engineering Manager” or “Head of Engineering.”

The Lead of Leads EM archetype requires the added ability to lead other leaders. This is a significantly different skill set from leading individual contributors. Leading other leaders demands a broader understanding of different leadership styles. It also means a person must adapt their own leadership style in response. Successful Lead of Leads EMs first built their skills leading at a team level before transitioning to this archetype.