Hi everyone. Looking for some advice on a career shift. I am a mechanical engineer with 10 years experience in aerodynamics, computational fluid dynamics, and heat transfer. I have also spent time writing performant, physics-based codes in C++, C, and Fortran but I am by no means a programming expert.

Currently, I work in the legacy American automotive manufacturing industry and I have a great job but I see I am reaching the ceiling in terms of salary, benefits, etc. This industry offers nothing like what I see in Tech (paid parental leave, generous stock options, bonuses, and opportunities for advancement).

I am considering moving to an industry which, to put it bluntly and selfishly, offers me more. This question is very open-ended, but looking for opinions. I could try and go the individual contributor route, performing the same role (thermal engineering) at Microsoft, Google, Apple, etc. or I could try and shift my role away from mechE to more heavily emphasize the software engineering portion of my skillset at something like Amazon.

Anyway, I am hoping to get advice from anyone who has done something similar. Thanks for any advice.