Dropbox Engineering Career Framework

IC2 Technical Program Manager

I deliver well-specified program tasks efficiently and independently to achieve team-level goals

Scope Area of ownership and level of autonomy / ambiguity

• I execute on defined projects to achieve team-level goals.
• I independently define the right solutions or use existing approaches to solve defined problems.

Collaborative Reach Organizational reach and extent of influence

• I work primarily within the scope of my team with high level guidance from my manager/TL

Impact Levers Technical levers typically exercised to achieve business impact

• Craft - I am increasingly mastering my craft and leverage it for higher impact (e.g. software design)
• Mentorship - I may mentor new hires, interns, or more junior engineers.

🏆 Results

Impact

• I act with urgency and deliver high-quality work that will add the most value
• I work with my manager to direct my focus so my work advances my team's goals
• I prioritize the right things and don't overcomplicate my work. When necessary, I propose appropriate scope adjustments.
• I effectively participate in the core processes of my team, including recommending and implementing process improvements

Ownership

• I follow through on my commitments, take responsibility for my work, and deliver on time
• I proactively identify and advocate for opportunities to improve the current state of projects
• I own my failures and learn from them
• I think a step or two ahead in my work, solve the right problems before they become bigger problems, and problem-solve with my manager when I'm stuck

Decision Making

• I Identify and gather input from others and consider customer needs to make informed and timely decisions

🌟 Direction

Agility

• I’m open to change and enthusiastic about new initiatives
• I work with my manager to navigate complex and ambiguous situations

Innovation

• I ask questions and contribute to new ideas/approaches
• I experiment with new approaches and share what I learned

🌳 Talent

Personal Growth

• I proactively ask for feedback from those I work with and identify ways to act upon it
• I have self-awareness about my strengths and areas for development
• I drive discussions with my manager about aspirational goals and seek out opportunities to learn and grow

Hiring

• I contribute to interviewing and assessing candidates to help us build a diverse and talented team. I am calibrated and consistently perform high-signal interviews
• I am able to represent my team’s initiatives and goals to candidates in a compelling way

Talent Development

• I model integrity and a high standard of excellence for my work.
• I help the more junior members of my team, host interns, or am a residency mentor
• I offer honest feedback that is delivered with empathy to help others learn and grow

🌈 Culture

Collaboration

• I can effectively collaborate to get work done
• I work with my manager to manage conflict with empathy and cooperation in mind

Organizational Health

• I contribute to a positive sense of community on the team (e.g. engage in team lunches, team offsites, and other group activities, help with new-hire on-boarding).
• I listen to different perspectives and I cut biases from my words and actions
• I practice the Dropbox Diversity Commitments on a regular basis

Communication

• I write and speak clearly
• I listen to understand others and ask clarifying questions
• I share relevant information on my projects to my manager, team and customers.

🦉 Craft

I operate as an effective member of a team and, with guidance from more senior TPMs, often manage sub-components of programs. I often mentor new hires, interns, or more junior TPMs, while delivering well-specified tasks efficiently and independently. I am primarily expected to focus on becoming a master of my craft as a TPM, assisting more junior team members, and contribute to the technical and product decisions for my team.

Managing Programs

• I can independently run sub-projects of programs or own short term projects.
• I take input from stakeholders about projects and program components I own. I use this data to influence technical decisions as well as refine processes
• I’m able to effectively leverage and apply components of process frameworks for my assigned sub-projects and short term projects.
• I am able to identify risks and issues and manage mitigation and resolution strategies.
• I effectively break down projects and communicate the plan/progress to my team and leadership.

Technical Acumen

• I have working knowledge and /or direct experience in working in a technical domain such as software development, system administration, quality engineering, etc.
• I understand technical elements that are part of the programs I manage and can effectively communicate about it to engineers, managers and other TPMs.