codedruid in 
Software Engineer
Pivoting to Technical Project Manager roles
I have 15 years of Software Engineering experience. Looking to mix up my career and switch to a more Technical Project Manager or Product Owner role.
Anyone have advice on making the pivot to a Technical PM/PO?
I'm looking into certifications like the scrum and agile certs. I've literally managed projects and ran scrum meetings almost daily for a majority of my career without the official title of Scrum Master or project manager in addition to doing my normal engineer work each day. The only thing I don't have is the certs for it.
Curious what opportunities are out there and what makes sense to pursue. Turns out most applications get rejected really quick even if I highlight my Scrum Master and Project Management experience in each of my engineering roles over the years. Makes pivoting a challenge.
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ephemeraTechnical Program Manager
Hey.. did you figure out what to do? I personally made such a change a while back..from a tech lead to a TPO role and i wud advice against it.. a TPM would suit better. Also certs are not necessary. But the market right now is not supportive of a change. Wdyt?
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codedruidSoftware Engineer
What I have done is this:
- 3 different resumes
-- Technical Project Manager
-- Senior Engineering Manager
-- Staff Software Engineer
- Change my title on Indeed, LinkedIn, and other platforms
- Inform my references and those that wrote letters of recommendation that I'd like to have my Technical Project Management skills highlighted with minor references to my individual contributor background
Basically, each resume has the same number of jobs (work experience) listed; however, I have fine-tuned it for the job I'm applying to.
For instance, I'll list the jobs/work experiences like this:
-----------------
Technical Project Manager example:
Senior Engineering Manager
2020 - 2022
- Partnered with 3 different departments to define the business requirements for 12+ mobile API applications
- Standardized the technical requirements used by 50+ back-end engineers when creating cloud-based architecture solutions
-----------------
Tech Lead/Manager example:
Senior Engineering Manager
2020 - 2022
- Mentored 50+ developers by providing best practices, code reviews, one-on-ones, and pair programming
- Partnered with 3 different departments in aligning roadmaps, approving software architect proposals, and standardizing cloud-based solutions for the mobile organization
-----------------
Staff Software Engineer example:
Staff Software Engineer
2020 - 2022
- Created a standardized shared library for all (12+) mobile API applications
- Modernized, containerized, and deployed a dozen mobile API applications to the cloud-based environment
- Led architecture discussions on a weekly basis with engineering teams
-----------------
As you can see, it's the same job; albeit, with a different description of the work with the goal of specifically targeting whatever job I am applying for.
I have yet to succeed with the technical project manager roles. I primarily hear back from the manager or staff engineer roles I apply to. So it's tough out there!!
- 3 different resumes
-- Technical Project Manager
-- Senior Engineering Manager
-- Staff Software Engineer
- Change my title on Indeed, LinkedIn, and other platforms
- Inform my references and those that wrote letters of recommendation that I'd like to have my Technical Project Management skills highlighted with minor references to my individual contributor background
Basically, each resume has the same number of jobs (work experience) listed; however, I have fine-tuned it for the job I'm applying to.
For instance, I'll list the jobs/work experiences like this:
-----------------
Technical Project Manager example:
Senior Engineering Manager
2020 - 2022
- Partnered with 3 different departments to define the business requirements for 12+ mobile API applications
- Standardized the technical requirements used by 50+ back-end engineers when creating cloud-based architecture solutions
-----------------
Tech Lead/Manager example:
Senior Engineering Manager
2020 - 2022
- Mentored 50+ developers by providing best practices, code reviews, one-on-ones, and pair programming
- Partnered with 3 different departments in aligning roadmaps, approving software architect proposals, and standardizing cloud-based solutions for the mobile organization
-----------------
Staff Software Engineer example:
Staff Software Engineer
2020 - 2022
- Created a standardized shared library for all (12+) mobile API applications
- Modernized, containerized, and deployed a dozen mobile API applications to the cloud-based environment
- Led architecture discussions on a weekly basis with engineering teams
-----------------
As you can see, it's the same job; albeit, with a different description of the work with the goal of specifically targeting whatever job I am applying for.
I have yet to succeed with the technical project manager roles. I primarily hear back from the manager or staff engineer roles I apply to. So it's tough out there!!
2
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