Beyond the Management Track: The Trident Model for Engineering Career Development

One of the most persistent challenges in technology organizations is providing meaningful career progression for engineers without forcing them into management roles they don’t want or aren’t suited for. The traditional “up or out” mentality—where the only path to advancement is through people management—wastes technical talent and creates frustrated managers who’d rather be coding.

Pat Kua’s Trident Model of Career Development offers a more nuanced approach that recognizes three distinct career tracks, each with equal potential for impact and advancement. This model aligns perfectly with our approach to building high-performance engineering organizations where diverse talents and career aspirations can thrive.

The Problem with Binary Career Models

The Traditional Management Trap

Most technology organizations offer a simple choice: stay in your current role forever, or become a manager. This binary approach creates several problems:

Misaligned Incentives: The best engineers often make poor managers because the skills that make someone great at coding don’t necessarily translate to people leadership.

Loss of Technical Expertise: When your best technical people become managers, you lose their hands-on contribution to technical decisions and mentorship.

Limited Growth Paths: Individual contributors hit a ceiling where they can’t advance in compensation or influence without leaving their passion behind.

Management Resentment: Engineers forced into management roles often become disengaged, affecting both their performance and team morale.

The Limitations of Two-Track Systems

Many organizations have attempted to solve this with a simple management/technical track split. However, this still fails to capture the complexity of modern engineering roles and the diverse ways people can create value in technology organizations.

The Trident Model: Three Paths to Impact

Pat Kua’s Trident Model recognizes that there are actually three distinct ways to create value in technology organizations, each requiring different skills and offering different types of impact.

Track 1: Management Focus (70-80% Management Activities)

Core Responsibility: Leading people and organizational systems to enable team success.

Key Activities:

• People development and career coaching
• Team formation and organizational design
• Strategic planning and resource allocation
• Cross-functional coordination and communication
• Performance management and goal setting

Skills Required:

• Emotional intelligence and interpersonal communication
• Strategic thinking and business acumen
• Conflict resolution and negotiation
• Change management and organizational development
• Systems thinking and process optimization

Example Roles:

• Engineering Manager
• Director of Engineering
• VP of Engineering
• CTO (in larger organizations)

Career Progression Indicators:

Early Management (Team Lead):
- Leading 3-7 engineers effectively
- Clear team goals and delivery outcomes
- Team satisfaction and retention metrics
- Successful 1:1 coaching and development

Mid-Level Management (Engineering Manager):
- Managing 10-15 engineers across multiple teams
- Cross-functional project leadership
- Contribution to engineering strategy and planning
- Organizational process improvement

Senior Management (Director+):
- Leading 25+ engineers across multiple functions
- Strategic business impact and technical vision
- Organizational culture and capability development
- Industry thought leadership and external representation

This track aligns with our operating model framework, particularly the decision-making and coordination capabilities that enable organizational effectiveness.

Track 2: Technical Leadership Focus (70-80% Technical Leadership)

Core Responsibility: Providing technical vision, strategy, and guidance while maintaining hands-on technical involvement.

Key Activities:

• Technical vision and architecture decisions
• Technology strategy and risk management
• Technical requirement clarification and validation
• Cross-team technical coordination
• Technical mentoring and knowledge sharing

Skills Required:

• Deep technical expertise and continuous learning
• Systems architecture and design thinking
• Technical communication and documentation
• Influence without authority
• Strategic technical planning

Example Roles:

• Tech Lead
• Principal Engineer
• Staff Engineer
• Software Architect
• Distinguished Engineer

Technical Leadership Progression:

Early Technical Leadership (Senior Engineer/Tech Lead):
- Technical ownership of complex systems or features
- Mentoring junior engineers effectively
- Cross-team technical coordination
- Technology evaluation and recommendation

Mid-Level Technical Leadership (Principal Engineer):
- Multi-system architecture and design
- Technical strategy for team or domain
- Industry expertise and thought leadership
- Technical risk identification and mitigation

Senior Technical Leadership (Staff/Distinguished Engineer):
- Organization-wide technical influence
- Technology strategy and innovation leadership
- External technical representation and standardization
- Next-generation technology evaluation and adoption

This track requires the deep technical expertise outlined in our engineering practices framework, particularly the advanced practices in automation and self-service stages.

Track 3: Individual Contributor Focus (70-80% Execution)

Core Responsibility: Deep specialization and execution excellence in specific technical domains.

Key Activities:

• Deep technical problem-solving and implementation
• Specialized expertise development and application
• Quality delivery and technical excellence
• Knowledge documentation and sharing
• Focused contribution to team and product success

Skills Required:

• Deep domain expertise and technical mastery
• Problem-solving and analytical thinking
• Quality-focused execution and attention to detail
• Collaboration and knowledge sharing
• Continuous learning and skill development

Example Roles:

• Senior Software Engineer
• Database Specialist
• Performance Engineer
• Security Engineer
• Data Scientist

Individual Contributor Progression:

Senior Individual Contributor:
- Expert-level skills in specific technical domains
- Consistent high-quality delivery and problem-solving
- Effective collaboration and knowledge sharing
- Mentoring and technical guidance for peers

Principal Individual Contributor:
- Recognized expert with organization-wide impact
- Complex problem-solving and innovation capabilities
- Technical thought leadership in specialized areas
- Significant contribution to technical standards and practices

Distinguished Individual Contributor:
- Industry-recognized expertise and innovation
- Technical breakthroughs and novel solutions
- External thought leadership and community contribution
- Unique technical capabilities that create competitive advantage

This track enables the deep technical excellence that powers our engineering practices, from development guidelines to AI-driven operations.

The Power of the Trident Model

Recognizing Real-World Complexity

The Trident Model’s strength lies in recognizing that most roles involve elements from multiple tracks. A Tech Lead might spend 60% of their time on technical leadership, 25% on management activities, and 15% on individual contribution. This flexibility reflects the reality of modern engineering roles.

Hybrid Role Examples:

Tech Lead (Technical Leadership + Management):
- 60% technical architecture and strategy
- 30% team coordination and people development
- 10% hands-on coding and implementation

Senior Engineering Manager (Management + Technical Leadership):
- 70% people management and organizational development
- 25% technical strategy and architecture input
- 5% hands-on technical validation and review

Principal Engineer (Technical Leadership + Individual Contribution):
- 60% technical strategy and cross-team coordination
- 35% hands-on architecture and complex implementation
- 5% team coordination and mentoring

Career Flexibility and Development

The model enables more fluid career development where people can:

• Experiment with different types of contribution before committing
• Transition between tracks based on interests and organizational needs
• Combine strengths from multiple tracks in hybrid roles
• Specialize deeply in their area of greatest impact and interest

Implementing the Trident Model

Career Ladder Design

Track-Specific Competencies: Create distinct competency frameworks for each track while recognizing overlap and interaction:

Management Track Competencies:
- People leadership and development
- Strategic thinking and planning
- Communication and influence
- Organizational design and change management
- Business acumen and customer focus

Technical Leadership Track Competencies:
- Technical vision and architecture
- Technology strategy and innovation
- Technical communication and mentoring
- Cross-functional technical coordination
- Industry expertise and thought leadership

Individual Contributor Track Competencies:
- Deep technical expertise and mastery
- Problem-solving and analytical thinking
- Quality execution and technical excellence
- Collaboration and knowledge sharing
- Continuous learning and skill development

Performance Evaluation and Growth

Track-Appropriate Metrics: Different tracks require different success measures:

Management Track Metrics:

• Team satisfaction and engagement scores
• Delivery predictability and quality
• Cross-functional collaboration effectiveness
• Talent development and retention
• Strategic goal achievement

Technical Leadership Track Metrics:

• Technical decision quality and impact
• Cross-team technical coordination effectiveness
• Innovation and technology adoption success
• Technical mentoring and knowledge sharing
• Industry recognition and thought leadership

Individual Contributor Track Metrics:

• Technical delivery quality and complexity
• Problem-solving impact and innovation
• Skill development and expertise growth
• Collaboration and knowledge sharing contribution
• Specialized capability development

Compensation and Recognition

Equitable Advancement: Ensure that all three tracks offer equivalent opportunities for:

• Compensation growth and equity participation
• Organizational influence and decision-making authority
• Recognition and career achievement
• Professional development and learning opportunities
• Industry visibility and networking

Connection to Our Frameworks

Engineering Practices Integration

The Trident Model aligns with different aspects of our engineering practices framework:

Management Track enables organizational practices:

• Culture development
• Coordination mechanisms
• Performance management

Technical Leadership Track drives advanced practices:

• Golden path evolution
• Autonomous team enablement
• AI-driven operations

Individual Contributor Track powers technical excellence:

• Development guidelines
• Infrastructure as code
• DevSecOps implementation

Operating Model Support

The model supports our operating model by:

• Creating clear career paths that support organizational needs
• Enabling diverse leadership styles and contributions
• Supporting flow optimization through appropriate role design
• Enhancing motivation through meaningful career progression

Common Implementation Challenges

The Promotion Bias

Problem: Organizations still treat management track as the “real” advancement path, creating subtle bias against other tracks.

Solution: Ensure equivalent compensation, recognition, and influence opportunities across all tracks. Make this visible and explicit in career communications.

The Skill Gap Challenge

Problem: People want to advance in a track but lack the necessary skills for the next level.

Solution: Create comprehensive development programs for each track, including mentoring, training, and stretch assignment opportunities.

The Role Confusion Issue

Problem: Unclear boundaries between tracks lead to role confusion and conflict.

Solution: Clear role definitions, responsibilities, and decision-making authority for each track and level.

The Transition Difficulty

Problem: People struggle to move between tracks or find the right balance in hybrid roles.

Solution: Support experimental assignments, mentoring across tracks, and gradual role transitions.

Building Your Trident Career Strategy

For Individual Engineers

Self-Assessment Questions:

1. Energy and Passion: Which activities energize you most?
2. Natural Strengths: Where do your talents naturally align?
3. Impact Preference: How do you prefer to create value?
4. Growth Areas: Which skills do you want to develop?
5. Long-term Vision: Where do you see yourself in 3-5 years?

Development Strategy:

Management Track Development:
- Seek leadership opportunities in projects and initiatives
- Develop coaching and mentoring skills
- Study business strategy and organizational design
- Build cross-functional relationships and communication skills

Technical Leadership Track Development:
- Take on complex technical problems and architecture challenges
- Develop technical communication and mentoring capabilities
- Study industry trends and emerging technologies
- Build influence through technical expertise and guidance

Individual Contributor Track Development:
- Deepen expertise in chosen technical domains
- Develop reputation for quality and excellence
- Contribute to technical communities and knowledge sharing
- Focus on solving complex, high-value technical problems

For Engineering Leaders

Organizational Design:

1. Career Ladder Creation: Develop clear progression paths for all three tracks
2. Role Definition: Create distinct job descriptions and competency frameworks
3. Compensation Equity: Ensure equivalent opportunities across tracks
4. Performance Systems: Adapt evaluation criteria to each track’s contribution model

Culture Development:

• Celebrate success across all tracks equally
• Provide mentoring and development opportunities for each path
• Create cross-track collaboration and learning opportunities
• Recognize the unique value each track brings to organizational success

The Future of Engineering Careers

Emerging Patterns

AI-Enhanced Roles: All three tracks will be transformed by AI and automation, requiring new skills and focus areas:

• Management: AI-assisted decision-making and people analytics
• Technical Leadership: AI architecture and responsible AI development
• Individual Contributors: AI-powered development and specialized AI domain expertise

Remote and Distributed Work: The Trident Model adapts well to distributed teams:

• Management: Distributed team leadership and virtual culture building
• Technical Leadership: Asynchronous technical coordination and documentation
• Individual Contributors: Deep focus work enabled by remote environments

Platform and Developer Experience: New specializations emerging:

• Management: Developer experience and platform team leadership
• Technical Leadership: Platform architecture and developer tooling strategy
• Individual Contributors: Developer tool creation and platform engineering

Organizational Evolution

Career Fluidity: Future organizations will enable more fluid movement between tracks based on interests, organizational needs, and career stage.

Skill Portfolio Approach: Engineers will develop capabilities across multiple tracks while specializing in one, creating more versatile and adaptable professionals.

Impact-Based Progression: Career advancement will focus more on measurable impact and value creation rather than traditional hierarchical advancement.

Getting Started: Implementing the Trident Model

Phase 1: Assessment and Planning (Month 1)

1. Current State Analysis: Map existing roles and career paths
2. Gap Identification: Identify missing opportunities and unclear progression paths
3. Stakeholder Alignment: Build leadership support for multi-track career development
4. Pilot Planning: Select teams or departments for initial implementation

Phase 2: Framework Development (Month 2-3)

1. Competency Frameworks: Develop track-specific skills and progression criteria
2. Role Definitions: Create clear job descriptions and expectations
3. Compensation Alignment: Ensure equitable opportunities across tracks
4. Performance Systems: Adapt evaluation and goal-setting processes

Phase 3: Implementation and Communication (Month 4-6)

1. Career Conversations: Help individuals understand their options and preferences
2. Development Planning: Create individual development plans aligned with chosen tracks
3. Manager Training: Prepare managers to coach across different career tracks
4. Organizational Communication: Share the model and its benefits broadly

Phase 4: Optimization and Evolution (Ongoing)

1. Feedback Collection: Regular assessment of model effectiveness and employee satisfaction
2. Continuous Improvement: Refine competencies, roles, and processes based on experience
3. Success Stories: Share examples of successful career development across all tracks
4. Industry Evolution: Adapt model to changing technology and business needs

Conclusion

The Trident Model represents a fundamental shift from binary career thinking to recognizing the diverse ways people can create value in technology organizations. By providing three distinct but equally valuable career tracks, organizations can:

• Optimize Talent: Enable people to contribute in their areas of greatest strength and passion
• Retain Expertise: Keep technical experts engaged without forcing them into management
• Scale Leadership: Develop leadership capabilities across multiple dimensions
• Improve Performance: Align individual growth with organizational needs

As Pat Kua notes, “All models are wrong, some are useful.” The Trident Model isn’t perfect, but it provides a much more nuanced and realistic framework for career development than traditional approaches.

Combined with our engineering practices and operating model frameworks, the Trident Model creates comprehensive support for building high-performance engineering organizations where diverse talents can thrive and advance.

The future belongs to organizations that can attract, develop, and retain the best engineering talent across all three tracks. By implementing the Trident Model thoughtfully and systematically, technology leaders can create career environments that support both individual fulfillment and organizational excellence.

References and Further Reading

Primary Source:

• Kua, P. (2022). “The Trident Model of Career Development”. Pat Kua’s Blog.

Related Career Development Resources:

• Camille Fournier’s “The Manager’s Path” - Management track development
• Will Larson’s “Staff Engineer” - Technical leadership track progression
• Julia Evans’ career development writing - Individual contributor excellence

Framework Integration:

• Our Engineering Practices framework provides the technical foundation for all three tracks
• Our Operating Model framework creates organizational support for diverse career paths
• Our Path to Technical Mastery blog post complements individual contributor development

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Career development isn’t about climbing a single ladder—it’s about finding the path where your talents and passions can create the greatest impact. The Trident Model provides the framework for organizations to support diverse career aspirations while building exceptional engineering capabilities.