A framework for career advancement that decouples compensation from titles and supports multiple paths.
Principles
Enhanced segmentation creates more advancement opportunities without inflating titles.
Salary is independent of senior leadership roles — ranges widen at higher levels rather than requiring a management track to grow compensation.
The Engineering Pendulum is supported by the salary structure — moving between IC and management shouldn't require a financial sacrifice.
Architecture is a competency, not a role — the ability to reason architecturally should be developed across all levels, not gatekept behind a title.
Individual contributors report to peer-level or more senior engineering managers — ICs should never report up to someone who can't evaluate their technical work.
Compensation Structure
Base pay follows a logarithmic progression — meaningful early jumps that taper at senior levels.
Bonus is tied to company performance with linear growth across levels.
Equity increases inversely to base pay — higher-level engineers take more of their compensation in equity.