titles and expectations can be specific to industry, company scale, and even company by company. senior director in one place can mean senior manager in another, or even more towards svp at another. inconsistent, sometimes highly so. this can lead to interviews that are just absurd, as the two sides have a fundamental, but unrecognized, disagreement on what a given title means.
startups can inflate titles quite a bit, so if you’re looking in that space, don’t be surprised if there is a disconnect.
there is also a somewhat new (at least newly remembered) intense focus from the bean counters right now around doing more with less. efficiency, if you will.
in some businesses, especially those without a real war chest, this takes the form of leaders that are hands-on. which typically means you’re expected to lead while also part-time contributing. or maybe it was the other way around. depends on the place.
whether you view this as a good thing should really depend on you, the role, and the company. it isn’t always. it isn’t never.
you already have a better answer before you read the above, if you did. a month on leetcode is a waste. if the role and the company don’t inspire you to put in extra, you probably shouldn’t.
