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IT Leadership

Head of Engineering

Leads the engineering organisation, strategy and delivery across teams.

Experience level: ExpertCoding level: MediumTechnical difficulty: 65/100

Leads the engineering organisation, strategy and delivery across teams.

Entry

Expert

Coding

Medium

Key skills

Engineering leadershipStrategyDelivery at scaleStakeholder management
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Career overview

The Head of Engineering leads the engineering organisation: strategy, delivery, hiring, technical standards and team development across multiple teams. They report to executive leadership. The role leads to IT Manager, IT Director or VP Technology.

Main responsibilities

  • Manage an engineering team and its delivery
  • Define strategy and steer long-term direction
  • Coordinate the technical work of the team
  • Mentor junior team members and review their work
  • Manage budget, scope and risks
  • Align stakeholders and report progress
  • Prioritise work and manage competing demands
  • Structure work, resources and governance
  • Ensure delivery of products and programs
  • Keep technical documentation up to date

Technical skills

Engineering leadership92%
Strategy88%
Delivery at scale88%
Hiring & org design85%
Technical standards85%
Stakeholder management88%
Budget82%
Mentoring82%

Technologies

JiraConfluenceAzure DevOpsGitHubJira AlignPower BIExcelTeamsSlackSharePointPowerPointM365KubernetesTerraformPrometheusGrafanaNotionPlanview

Education level

Education requirements vary depending on the company, country and experience. Professional experience, certifications and technical skills can sometimes compensate for formal education.

High School / Bac

Less common

Bac+2 (2-year degree)

Less common

Bac+3 (Bachelor)

Less common

Bac+5 (Master / Engineering)

Common entry point

Experience & coding level

Experience level

Entry LevelJuniorIntermediateSeniorExpert

Coding level

No codingLowMediumHighVery High
Technical difficulty65%

Useful certifications

Certifications are never mandatory. They are one way among others to prove a skill.

  • SAFe Program Consultant
  • PSM II
  • Engineering Leadership

Where can this career take you?

Multiple paths are possible. Click a role to open its profile.

Direct progression

Head of EngineeringIT Manager

Possible branches

IT DirectorVP Technology
Where Can Your IT Career Take You?

Where can you go next?

Realistic next career moves, with compatibility and a transition roadmap for each.

IT ManagerHigh

Overlap: 74% · Difficulty: Easy

Skills to learn: Operations, Team development

View roadmap
IT DirectorHigh

Overlap: 73% · Difficulty: Medium

Skills to learn: Governance, Team development

View roadmap
VP TechnologyHigh

Overlap: 61% · Difficulty: Hard

Skills to learn: Architecture & platforms, Innovation, Team development

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VP EngineeringHigh

Overlap: 96% · Difficulty: Easy

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Where can you go from here?

A typical progression built from real career relationships. Click any role to open its profile.

  1. Engineering Manager
  2. Head of Engineering
  3. IT Manager
  4. IT Director
  5. VP Technology
  6. CTO
Soft skills
  • Leadership
  • Strategic thinking
  • Clear communication
  • Stakeholder management
  • Mentoring
  • Decisiveness
  • Big-picture thinking
Common previous careers

Roles that frequently lead into this career.

Engineering ManagerHigh

Overlap: 61% · Difficulty: Medium

Skills to learn: Strategy, Technical standards, Budget

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Related resources

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Next step

The path to IT Manager

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A documented transition from this role to the next.

Head of EngineeringIT Manager

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