Ask HN: Transitioning from Sales Engineering into Product Management

2 pointsakhil-c2y ago2 comments

Context: I'm at a crossroads in my career and looking for other perspectives.

I know this is highly personal and context dependent, but looking for general thoughts or experience.

So, I'm thinking about transitioning into PM at the same org.

While I enjoy the day-to-day of an SE, my biggest gripe is that most of the work is fleeting. Sales cycles come and go. A consequence of this is that there's little leverage of building/owning something over time.

Things I like about SE:

- Decent performance-based comp

- Variety in prospects/ building solutions

- Lot of autonomy, most of the time

- Good WLB relative to comp potential (can have big spikes at times)

These are all true, in my experience.

But even with all of that, I'm left searching for more.

I've heard SE described as the 'best dead-end job ever', and I'd tend to agree.

So, HN - any thoughts on transitioning from SE to PM?

Other info - 5 YOE at current org, 3 YOE as Sr SE

- Deep domain expert product + industry at current org

- Top performing SE ( 3 x SE of the Year)

2 comments

2 comments · 1 top-level

alephnerd2y ago· 1 in thread

> So, HN - any thoughts on transitioning from SE to PM?

It's a good move.

When I was a PM, the best PMs I worked with were former Engineers or former SEs so they had the right mix of market experience and technical skills, and I myself considered doing a reverse PM-to-SE switch at one point.

PMs who specialized only as PMs sucked because they lacked relevant domain experience.

The WLB might be better as a PM as well due to stabler compensation practices.

I'd recommend making the move laterally within your company, as you already have the domain experience and product experience, plus an existing network with your Sales and Solutions Engineering orgs.

I guess the question is why do you want to become a PM though - from the sounds of it you have a great rapport within your Sales org, and I'd assume your compensation would be higher than as a PM.

akhil-cOP2y ago

Thank you for the thoughtful reply!

> PMs who specialized only as PMs sucked because they lacked relevant domain experience.

I feel this. Currently working on a niche product in a niche domain. My goal at this org would be to bring a customer/buyer's perspective.

As for why move to PM at all, I've felt that I'm stagnating in my current role.

We built the whole SE function. It's now a well-oiled machine and that was a fun journey. But things have become routine.

Also, the horizons are short. You're constantly reacting to the next deal or quarter, with little throughline across them (other than iterative improvements).

And yes, compensation would likely take a hit esp. in the short-term. I would see the internal lateral move as a jumping off spot to do PM at other companies.

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