Ask HN: What Are Technical Program Managers? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: What Are Technical Program Managers?

1 pointdjangovm2 comments

I come from a background of start-ups, which did not have this position. I am now being offered this position at one of the big 4.

I have been told that they manage technical projects, are involved in large system designs, manage communications, and can optionally code. I personally do not want to completely let go of coding and technical contributions, and being on management sides gives a different experience, which could be nice. I know people in TPM role at orgs like LinkedIn, and tech contribution is not what I have seen them do.

Can any one give me a picture of what TPMs are/do, and how much of what I have been told is actually correct?

1. Are TPMs expected to be technical? 2. Are roles/responsibilities of TPM at different companies like Google, Facebook, LinkedIn etc different? 3. How much of technical contributions (design, coding) can they get involved in? 4. How much of a flexibility will I have if I want to shift back from TPM role to SWE role later on? (within same org, or outside) 4. Career growth in this role? 5. Finally, compensation comparison with an SWE role in, let's say, a typical company at Bay Area.

Program manager

First, it's useful to distinguish between Technical PROGRAM Manager (TPROG) from Technical PROJECT manager (TPROJ). TPROGs are a bridge between inside teams and the outside, including customers and partners. The TPROG works with developers, DevOps, product managers, sales to bring the company's solutions to real world deployment. TPROGs own delivery of products and services to customers, possibly, through partners, using people and resources not directly under their control. Key skills: deep technical knowledge of the product and its deployment to the customer, close working with the customer about what they need by when, trust of the internal business and technical teams, even though, typically, TPROGs don't have administrative authority for a the teams, ability to write and implement governance policies to guide all stakeholders in the the successful delivery.

TPROJs, on the other hand, are usually part of the development team and manage completion of development projects. This usually has deep responsibilities for the technical aspects of products.

Each company has their own unique definition of these roles, so you need to understand exactly your responsibilities and the metrics by which your performance will be evaluated in the particular situation.

If the TPROG role is defined as above, you will NOT have direct responsibility for coding and software development. But remaining abreast of the internal structure of the product or service will be a huge advantage. But you will be too busy with all of the complex challenges of product delivery to have any time for coding.

I hope this helps a little...

This helps a lot. Thanks!

Reply on news.ycombinator.com