What's the difference? Supervisor, Manager, Senior Manager, Director + VP.

Welcome to this week’s Leadership Launch. The weekly newsletter designed for mid-level leaders in tech.

Last week’s edition: I can do Hard Things

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I’ve been working in tech for over 15 years, 10 of those years as a leader.

When I started as a Manager, I had no idea what the differences in the various leadership roles were or how to get to the next level.

I remember joining my current company in 2017 as a Manager and I had some serious limiting beliefs.

The hiring Manager at the time was a Director and I thought to myself I would never have the chops to do his role. It scared me having that responsibility.

I just didn’t think it would be possible and I couldn’t make the mental jump to see myself being there.

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The purpose of this newsletter is to share powerful insights from my daily experience as a tech leader. This newsletter will help you to be more effective within your role, unlock your full potential and ignite inspiration within your team.

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Fast forward 4 years to 2021 and I moved from a Senior Manager position into a Director role.

It’s surprising what you can achieve with intentional and small steps over a consistent period.

When you’re working on your craft every day, you’re slowly closing the gap between where you are now and where you’re attempting to get to.

In today’s Newsletter, I am breaking down the core responsibilities of these different roles to give you a better understanding of what the purview looks like and what competencies are on show.

The roles shared are common in tech companies but will vary depending on size and structure. Smaller companies of course may not have all of the roles and the scope within some of these roles will be larger, especially in start-ups.

Photo by Andrew Neel on Unsplash

Supervisor:

• This is generally your first people manager gig. Where you have no experience in managing people and you’re trying it for the first time.

• You will be responsible for overseeing a small team of individual contributors or junior employees.

• Tasks may include assigning work, providing guidance and mentorship, and evaluating performance.

• The focus is on day-to-day operations and ensuring tasks are completed efficiently and effectively.

• This first year is challenging, so buckle in for a steep learning curve. Helping people to be successful in their roles is not easy.

• Some competencies I would expect to see on show: Driving for results, receptive to feedback, communicating effectively and time management.

Manager:

• You’re hired into this role with at least 2 years of experience managing people.

  • This is where I started in my current company leading a team of Tier 1 and Tier 2 analysts.

• You may be responsible for overseeing a larger team or multiple teams within a specific department or area.

• More experienced Managers in larger companies may lead other leaders such as having Supervisors underneath them.

• You’ll be responsible for hiring and firing, and root causing problems within your team.

• Other tasks include setting goals, developing strategies, and managing resources to achieve objectives.

• Some competencies I would expect to see on show: Coaching, performance management, basic root causing, proficiency with challenging conversations and making well-rounded decisions.

Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash

Senior Manager:

• You will have 5+ years of Leadership experience with a proven track record of developing people.

  • When I was in this role, I had three Supervisors and two Team Leads reporting to me directly, and around 35 indirect reports.

• Similar to a Manager role but with greater responsibility and broader oversight. May involve managing larger teams, multiple departments, or complex projects.

• You should be a lot more strategic now and focused on prevention and risk mitigation rather than solving problems and being reactive. You’ll achieve this through road map planning, inspecting and root cause analysis.