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What are the differences between an EM and Tech Lead at FAANGMULA companies?

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Senior Software Engineer at Taro Community19 days ago

What is the difference between an EM and Tech Lead position in terms of amount of individual contribution overall (is this a difference of 80-20%)? Not like a TPM position which is more business facing, but I expect EM to be more cross-functional than Tech Lead.

How is EM similar to Tech Lead, but how does it work with it at a larger company structure wise, and with TPMs on a project? Who has the most 'power' and autonomy?

Context: Previously I was a startup founder and CTO and as I contemplated senior IC roles that I have interviewed for (AI primarily), I'm curious to know the differences here because I could go either way and I'm afraid that EM roles I may be in less code day to day. Does it just mean I have more 1:1s for soft skill stuff to mentor other engineers as oppose to talk to them about the actual nature of the work?

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    Tech Lead @ Robinhood, Meta, Course Hero
    17 days ago

    This thread is pretty old, but I think it's still entirely true: "What are the commonalities and differences between tech leads and engineering managers?"

    How is EM similar to Tech Lead, but how does it work with it at a larger company structure wise, and with TPMs on a project?

    The TPM question is very interesting as I have seen TPM influence vary widely based on the organization and of course, the TPM themselves. When I was on Portal at Facebook, TPMs had an astonishing amount of power. The VP came from a TPM-heavy culture, and TPMs were everywhere. To make matters worse, they were mostly aggressive and loved to micromanage.

    At Instagram Ads, TPMs had almost 0 power. They were largely serving as extra "glue", filling in relatively straightforward gaps that the tech lead and engineering manager didn't have time to fill. A lot of their work was booking meetings and circulating project updates more widely.

    Who has the most 'power' and autonomy?

    This is also interesting as I think EMs definitely have more power (they can literally hire and fire people), but I think tech leads have more autonomy. As an EM, a lot of your schedule is tied up with meetings. These are commitments that you literally can't get away from. As a tech lead, you have far more control over your calendar and it's your choice whether you want to have more or less 1 on 1s.

    ...I'm afraid that EM roles I may be in less code day to day.

    If you're an EM, you definitely shouldn't be coding day to day. If that's happening, there's generally something wrong within the team or you aren't managing your time well.

    Overall, I think the overlap between TL and EM is around 20% on average if I had to put a number on it.

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      Senior Software Engineer
      Taro Community
      17 days ago

      Thanks Alex this is so helpful. I know I can pattern match against TPM since I have some business-savvy but I strongly dislike it when I hear some folks micromanaging or coming up with more and more features and an inability to accurately spec out how long something will to build because it takes I much time to actually do the thing if you’re in the weeds coding it yourself. It just makes me think what I should aspire ti be long term, tech lead or EM. Appreciate your perspective and sharing.