Engineering Management

Summary

The post presents an engineering-leadership perspective on how the author incepted and grew Ramp’s Core Engineering team from zero to 50+ engineers, while noting that the guidance is shaped by a company under Dunbar’s number. It defines an engineering manager’s role as unblocking reports, appreciating their contributions with technical depth, and helping them advance through the leveling deck. The central leadership practice is “pay attention”: build a coherent organizational model, maintain consistent direction, understand motivations, and avoid feedback that misses important tradeoffs. Core Engineering favored hiring individual-contributor engineers and moving some gradually into management after testing their aptitude. The post also presents one-on-ones as a way to build organizational context, and describes slow growth, intern mentorship, and prompt dispute resolution as forms of compounding management quality.

Context

The author aims to add an engineering leadership perspective to public commentary about Ramp’s culture of velocity, based on growing Core Engineering, the company’s largest engineering team by headcount and scope, from 0 to 50+ engineers. The guidance is explicitly framed for a company with headcount under Dunbar’s number and may develop stress fractures as the organization grows further.

Approach / What changed

The post defines management through unblocking reports, appreciating their work with technical depth, and helping them progress through the leveling deck. It emphasizes sustained attention, consistent reasoning, organizational context from one-on-ones, gradual manager development from individual contributors, intern mentorship, slow organizational growth, and prompt resolution of disputes.

Takeaways

• The operative definition of an engineering manager has three parts: unblock reports, meaningfully appreciate their contributions, and help them ascend the leveling deck through tailored work and opportunities to demonstrate proficiency.
• Core Engineering chose to hire individual-contributor engineers, with some gradually moving into management after demonstrating their ability to meet the manager role’s expectations.
• The post argues that slow growth and early intervention allow management quality to compound, while abrupt headcount increases and unresolved disputes can compound poor decisions and cultural problems.

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