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Attribute / Theme (27)
Key area (5) Competency
value (15) (Competency)
Engineering Competency Matrix Guidelines & FAQ E1 E2 E3 E4 E5 E6
Title Associate Engineer Engineer Senior Engineer Staff Engineer Senior Staff Engineer Principal Engineer
Focus execution of work facilitating, guiding, mentoring others in areas of work
scaling of
within task within epic within team within team & with team's business stakeholders across several teams across organization
competencies
Writing code Writes code with testability, readability, edge cases, Consistently writes functions that are easily Consistently writes production-ready code that is see E3 see E3 see E3
and errors in mind. testable, easily understood by other developers, easily testable, easily understood by other
and accounts for edge cases and errors. Uses developers, and accounts for edge cases and
docstrings effectively. errors. Understands when it is appropriate to
leave comments, but biases towards self-
documenting code.
Quality & testing Testing Knows the testing pyramid. Writes unit tests, Understands the testing pyramid, writes unit tests Understands the testing pyramid, and writes unit Understands their team's testing approach, and Understands the testing approach of several Understands organizational testing approach, and
sometimes with help from more senior engineers. in accordance with it, as well as higher level tests tests as well as higher level tests in accordance uses quality metrics to identify gaps. Works with teams, and uses quality metrics to identify gaps. uses quality metrics to identify gaps. Works with
with help from more senior engineers. Always with it. Always writes tests to handle expected their team to recommend solutions that are in Works with those teams to recommend solutions all teams to recommend solutions that are in
tests expected edge cases and errors as well as edge cases and errors gracefully, as well as happy accordance with accepted testing frameworks that are in accordance with accepted testing accordance with accepted testing frameworks and
the happy path. paths. and the testing pyramid. frameworks and the testing pyramid. Influences the testing pyramid. Drives organization wide
organization wide testing strategy. testing strategy.

Debugging Understands the basics of debugging and the tools Uses a systematic approach to debug issues Proficient at using systematic debugging to Proficient at using systematic debugging to Proficient at using systematic debugging to Leads incident response across the engineering
used for it. located within a single service. diagnose all issues located to a single service. diagnose all issues within the scope of their diagnose all issues within a set of related organization as needed. Uses systematic
Uses systematic debugging to diagnose cross domain. domains. debugging to diagnose issues across the
service issues, sometimes with help from more organization.
senior engineers.
Debugging &
Observability n/a (not applicable at this level) Is aware of the organization's monitoring Is aware of the organization's monitoring Drives monitoring work on their team based on Fosters a culture of observability across several Fosters a culture of observability across the
observability
philosophy and the operational data for their philosophy. Helps tune and change the the organization's monitoring philosophy. Is aware teams and helps them use operational data to engineering organization. Helps teams across the
Technical skills team’s domain. monitoring on their team accordingly. Is aware of of the operational data for their team’s domain improve stability and performance of their engineering organization use operational data to
the operational data for their team’s domain and and uses it as a basis for driving changes to the domains. improve stability and performance of their
uses it as a basis for suggesting stability and team's services to achieve stability and domains.
performance improvements. performance improvements.
Understanding Code Is able to gain context within team's domain with help Understands a portion of the team's domain, can Understands their team's domain at a high level Has expertise in their team's domain, including Has expertise in a set of related team's domains, Has expertise in the organization's architecture,
from more senior engineers. gain sufficient context to work productively in and can gather sufficient context to work the breadth of services, how they interact, and including the breadth of services, how they including all domains, their bounded contexts,
that portion. productively within it. Has expertise in a portion data flows between systems. Understands interact, and data flows between systems. and how they interact with each other.
of their team's domain. adjacent domains as they affect their team.

Software design & Software Is aware of overall service architecture. Designs basic Designs functions that are aligned with the Consistently designs code that is aligned with the Architects services and systems using well Works across teams to foster a culture of Works across the organization to foster a culture
architecture Architecture functions with an awareness of overall service overall service architecture. overall service architecture. Utilizes abstractions accepted design patterns to allow for iterative, architecture that allows for iterative, autonomous of architecture that allows for iterative,
architecture, avoiding duplication across codebases and code isolation effectively. autonomous development and future scaling. development and future scaling. Guides several autonomous development and future scaling.
and interface-breaking changes. Anticipates future use cases and makes design teams in anticipation of future use cases and Guides teams in the organization in anticipation
decisions that minimize the cost of future helps them make design decisions that minimize of future use cases and helps them make design
changes. the cost of future changes. decisions that minimize the cost of future
changes.
Security Understands the importance of security. Understands the importance of security. Utilizes Approaches all engineering work with a security Actively works with the security team, as well as Actively works with the security team, as well as Actively works with the security team to set and
this knowledge to ask more senior engineers for lens. Actively looks for security vulnerabilities their own team, to refine their team's approach across several teams, to apply the organization's refine organization wide security strategy.
Security help on making decisions that may have security both in the code and when providing peer to security based on the organization's security security strategy. Fosters a security first mindset Fosters a security first mindset across the
implications. reviews. strategy. Fosters a security first mindset within across those teams, leading by example. organization. Can recognize obscure security
their own team, and leads by example. threats that go unnoticed to others.
Work breakdown Understands value of rightsizing tasks to enable Before beginning work, ensures that tasks are Reviews tasks critically and ensures they’re Reviews epics and projects critically and ensures Reviews cross-team work critically and ensures it’ Reviews organization-wide work critically and
continuous integration and incremental delivery. appropriately sized for continuous integration appropriately sized for continuous integration and they’re appropriately broken down and s appropriately broken down and prioritised, and ensures it’s appropriately broken down and
and incremental delivery with help from incremental delivery. prioritised, and well understood by the team. well understood by all involved teams. prioritised across the organization.
teammates and manager.
Prioritisation, Acts according to task prioritisation Understands and acts according to task Ensures tasks are prioritised correctly, and that Ensures dependencies are noted and well Ensures cross-team dependencies are noted and Identifies dependencies across the organization
dependencies prioritisation. Notes dependencies. dependencies are noted. understood by the team, at both the task and epic well understood by all teams involved and other and works with individual teams to resolve them
level. Works within their team to foster a culture relevant stakeholders. Works across teams to before they become an issue, and installs
of priority setting and urgency in alignment with foster a culture of priority setting and urgency in preventative measures to mitigate repeat
Incremental value
organizational strategy. alignment with organizational strategy. occurrences. Works across the organization to
delivery
foster a culture of priority setting and urgency in
alignment with organizational strategy.
Dealing with n/a (not applicable at this level) Usually handles risk, change, and uncertainty Handles risk, change, and uncertainty within their Effectively handles risk, change, and uncertainty Effectively handles risk, change, and uncertainty Effectively handles risk, change, and uncertainty
ambiguity within their personal scope of work effectively. personal scope of work effectively. Decides and within their team. Decides and acts responsibly in across several teams. Decides and acts across the organization. Decides and acts
Usually decides and acts responsibly without acts responsibly without having the total picture their work with their team without having the responsibly in their work across teams without responsibly in their work across the organization
Delivery having the total picture during routine business, during routine business and when in high pressure total picture during routine business, as well as having the total picture during routine business, without having the total picture during routine
and when in high pressure situations. situations. when in high pressure situations. as well as when in high pressure situations. business, as well as when in high pressure
situations.
Reliability, delivery Has daily conversation with the team about the Commits to a realistic amount of work, and Ensures their commitments are realistic, Anticipates and communicates blockers, delays, Successfully manages cross-team commitments, Successfully manages organization-wide
accountability progress of their work. Delivers on commitments with a works with their teammates both to ensure they understands their priority and urgency, and and cost ballooning within their team’s projects, their progress, and roadmap to delivery. commitments, their progress, and roadmap to
sense of urgency. understand priority and urgency, and to deliver delivers upon them accordingly. Anticipates and before they require escalation. Ensures Anticipates and communicates blockers, delays, delivery. Ensures expectations across the
upon them accordingly. Escalates any blockers, communicates blockers, delays, and cost expectations with their team and external and cost ballooning across teams, before they organization and external stakeholders are
delays, and cost ballooning to their team daily. ballooning for their work before they require stakeholders are clarified between all parties require escalation. Ensures expectations across clarified between all parties involved.
Clarifies expectations with their teammates. escalation. Ensures expectations within their involved. teams and stakeholders are clarified between all
Self-organization team are clarified between all parties involved. parties involved.
Economic thinking Understands the importance of weighing cost and When taking action, weighs cost and value in When taking action, weighs cost and value in When taking action, weighs cost and value in When taking action, weighs cost and value in When taking action, weighs cost and value in
value in decision making. Asks more senior engineers order to take the most economic action with help order to take the most economic action. Uses this order to take the most economic action. Uses this order to make the most economic action. Uses order to make the most economic action. Uses
for help in applying this type of thinking to their work. from more senior engineers. Sometimes uses this thinking in their own work, and to make thinking in their own work, and to foster a culture this thinking in their own work, and to foster a this thinking in their own work, and to foster a
type of thinking to make suggestions to suggestions to teammates. within their team where people apply economic culture across several teams where people apply culture within the organization where people
teammates. thinking to make timely decisions. economic thinking to make timely decisions. apply economic thinking to make timely decisions.
Delivering Understands how to deliver praise and constructive Delivers praise and constructive feedback to their Delivers praise and constructive feedback to their Fosters a culture of delivering praise and Fosters a culture of delivering praise and Fosters a culture of delivering praise and
Feedback feedback in a useful manner. team, teammates, and manager in a useful team, teammates, and manager in a useful constructive feedback within their team and constructive feedback across several teams as constructive feedback across the organization.
manner. manner. Delivers feedback to their team's team's respective business stakeholders. Actively well as their respective business stakeholders. Actively demonstrates these behaviours.
business stakeholders when opportunities arise. demonstrates these behaviours. Actively demonstrates these behaviours.
Feedback
Seeking and Actively seeks out feedback from their teammates and see E1 see E1 Works within their team and with its business Works across several teams and with their Works across the organization to foster a culture
receiving feedback manager, and works to use feedback that they receive stakeholders to foster a culture of seeking out business stakeholders to foster a culture of of seeking out feedback and using it as a tool for
as a tool for growth. feedback and using it as a tool for growth. Actively seeking out feedback and using it as a tool for growth. Actively demonstrates these behaviours.
demonstrates these behaviours. growth. Actively demonstrates these behaviours.
Effective Communicates effectively, clearly, concisely and in an Usually communicates effectively, clearly, Communicates effectively, clearly, concisely in Is able to communicate effectively with a diverse Is able to communicate effectively with a diverse Is able to communicate effectively across the
communication audience-oriented way, in written and verbal form. concisely and in an audience-oriented way in written and verbal form both technical and non team. Fosters a culture of clear, concise, effective, set of teams. Fosters a culture of clear, concise, company. Fosters a culture of clear, concise,
Actively listens to others and ensures they are written and verbal form both technical and non technical subjects, and in an audience-oriented audience-oriented communication on their team, effective, audience-oriented communication effective, audience-oriented communication
understood. Pays attention to nonverbal technical subjects, to their teammates. Actively way. Actively listens to others and ensures they ensuring teammates actively listen to others and across several teams, ensuring teammates across the company, ensuring teammates actively
communication. listens to others and ensures they are understood. are understood. Pays attention to nonverbal are understood. Actively demonstrates these actively listen to others and are understood. listen to others and are understood. Actively
Pays attention to nonverbal communication. communication. behaviours. Pays attention to nonverbal Actively demonstrates these behaviours. Pays demonstrates these behaviours. Pays attention to
Communication communication. attention to nonverbal communication. nonverbal communication.
Knowledge Sharing Understands their area of work and shares their Understands their work domain, shares their Understands their team's domain, shares their Fosters a culture of documentation and Fosters a culture of documentation and Fosters a culture of documentation and
knowledge frequently with their teammates. knowledge frequently with their teammates and knowledge frequently with their teammates and knowledge sharing within their team and with knowledge sharing across several teams and their knowledge sharing across the organization;
contributes to their team's documentation. contributes to their team's documentation. their team's business stakeholders; actively respective business stakeholders; actively actively demonstrates these behaviors.
Feedback, Watches out for opportunities to share Watches out for opportunities to share knowledge demonstrates these behaviors. demonstrates these behaviors.
knowledge. and encourages others to do the same.
Communication,
Teamwork Helps their teammates when requested. Gives or When requested, helps their teammates Sometimes helps their teammates overcome Consistently helps their teammates overcome Consistently works across teams to help them Consistently works across the organization to
Collaboration shares credit where due. overcome obstacles, resolve blockers, and obstacles, resolve blockers, and complete work obstacles, resolve blockers, and complete work resolve blockers, and complete work tasks. enable teams to support each other. Ensures that
complete work tasks. Gives or shares credit tasks. Gives or shares credit where due. tasks. Gives or shares credit where due. Ensures that credit is shared and given where due. credit is shared and given where due.
where due.
Relationship Works to build strong relationships with their Works to build strong relationships with their Works to build strong relationships with their Works to build and improve strong relationships Works to build and improve strong relationships Works to build and improve strong relationships
building teammates and manager. teammates, manager, and product counterpart. teammates, manager, as well as their teams' with their teammates, manager, their teams' with engineers and managers across the across the organization. Leverages those
relevant business stakeholders. relevant business stakeholders, and senior organization as well as relevant business relationships to better plan for and position the
engineers across the organization. Leverages stakeholders for several teams. Leverages engineering organization.
relationships to better plan for and position their relationships to better plan for and position those
team. teams.
Collaboration
Handling Openly shares their opinions and contributes to Openly shares their opinions and contributes to Encourages their teammates to openly share Fosters a culture within their team where people Fosters a culture across several teams where Fosters a culture across the organization where
disagreement discussions in a respectful manner. Works with discussions in a respectful manner. Approaches their opinions and contribute to discussions in a are encouraged to share their opinions and people are encouraged to share their opinions people are encouraged to share their opinions
teammates to resolve disagreement in a healthy disagreement with their teammates non- respectful manner. Approaches disagreement contribute to discussions in a respectful manner, and contribute to discussions in a respectful and contribute to discussions in a respectful
manner. Is open to changing their perspective and defensively with inquisitiveness. Uses non-defensively with inquisitiveness. Uses approach disagreement non-defensively with manner, approach disagreement non-defensively manner, approach disagreement non-defensively
plans based on others' input. contradictory opinions as a basis for contradictory opinions as a basis for constructive, inquisitiveness, and use contradictory opinions as with inquisitiveness, and use contradictory with inquisitiveness, and use contradictory
constructive, productive conversations. Is open productive conversations. Is open to changing a basis for constructive, productive conversations. opinions as a basis for constructive, productive opinion as a basis for constructive, productive
to changing their perspective and plans based on their perspective and plans based on others' Is open to changing their perspective and plans conversations. Works through surface-level conversations. Integrates disagreeing
others' input. input. based on others' input. disagreements to expose the concerns of perspectives from the whole company into their
disagreeing voices and integrates these concerns perspective and plans.
into their perspective and plans.
Decision making Understands the impact of biases on decision making. Strives to be objective and reflects on their own see E2 Takes ownership of decisions made in their team Takes ownership of decisions made across teams Takes ownership of decisions made in the
Understands accountability. biases when making decisions. Holds themselves by helping their teammates make clear decisions by helping them make clear decisions in alignment engineering organization by helping organization
accountable for decision and outcomes. in alignment with organizational goals, backing with organizational goals, backing decisions made, members make clear decisions in alignment with
decisions made, and taking responsibility for and taking responsibility for their success. Raises organizational goals, backing decisions made, and
Decision making their success. Raises awareness for how biases awareness for how biases impact decisions and taking responsibility for their success. Raises
impact decisions and ensures accountability is ensures accountability is practiced throughout awareness for how biases impact decisions and
practiced within their team. Demonstrates these those teams. Demonstrates these behaviours ensures accountability is practiced throughout the
behaviours themselves. themselves. organization. Demonstrates these behaviours
themselves.
Driving alignment Contributes to conversations based on organizational Has conversations based on organizational Has conversations based on organizational Fosters a culture within their team of having Fosters a culture across several teams of of Fosters a culture across the organization of of
strategy and principles with their teammates when strategy and principles with their teammates strategy and principles with their teammates conversations based on organizational strategy having conversations based on organizational having conversations based on organizational
appropriate. Strongly oriented towards goals and works when appropriate. Strongly oriented towards when appropriate to ensure team alignment. and principles to create alignment. Strongly strategy and principles to create alignment. strategy and principles to create alignment.
Driving alignment
towards their team's goals. goals and works towards their team's goals. Strongly oriented towards goals and ensures their oriented towards goals and ensures their team is Strongly oriented towards goals and ensures Ensures goals are understood and continuously
team is continuously working towards their continuously working towards their goals. several teams are continuously working towards worked towards across the organization.
shared goals. their goals.
Process thinking Understands their team's practices and processes. Sometimes thinks about team practices and Regularly thinks about team practices and Thinks about team practices and processes and Thinks about practices and processes that affect Takes ownership and responsibility for
Leadership processes and discusses improvements with processes and discusses improvements with team. regularly discusses improvements with their team. several teams, discusses improvements with organizational practices and processes and their
Process thinking team. Sometimes collaborates with others to improve appropriate parties, and drives implemention. continuous improvement.
organizational practices and processes. Usually collaborates with others to improve
organizational practices and processes.
Facilitation n/a (not applicable at this level) n/a (not applicable at this level) Facilitates discussions within their team, ensuring see E3 Facilitates discussions across teams, ensuring that Facilitates organization-wide discussions,
that everyone has an opportunity to share their everyone has an opportunity to share their ensuring that everyone has an opportunity to
opinion and be heard, and that discussion opinion and be heard, and that discussion share their opinion and be heard, and that
Facilitation outcomes tie to stated goals. Encourages quiet outcomes tie to stated goals. Ensures relevant discussion outcomes tie to stated goals.
participants and ensures no one person parties are included in discussions. Guides Encourages quiet participants and ensures no one
dominates the conversation. discussions toward decisions, clarifies and gets person dominates the conversation.
buy-in.
Mentoring Seeks out mentorship to grow their own experience. Seeks out mentorship to grow their own Mentors their teammates in an open, respectful, Mentors their teammates in an open, respectful, Mentors across teams in an open, respectful, Mentors across the organization in an open,
experience. Sometimes mentors their teammates flexible, empathetic manner. Seeks out mentoring flexible, empathetic manner. Seeks out mentoring flexible, empathetic manner. Fosters a culture of respectful, flexible, empathetic manner. Fosters
in an open, respectful, flexible, empathetic opportunities specifically to create team opportunities specifically to create team mentoring across teams by seeking out an organizational culture of mentoring by seeking
Mentoring
manner. redundancy and backfill ability. redundancy and backfill ability. Mentors mentoring opportunities for themselves and out mentoring opportunities for themselves and
members of other teams as needed. others, and supports others in their growth as others, and supports others in their growth as
mentors. mentors.
Business acumen Has a basic understanding of their team's domain and Has a basic understanding of their team's domain, Has a thorough understanding of their team's Has a thourough understanding of their team's Has a thorough understanding of several team's Has a thorough understanding of the entire
CI/CD marketplace. and how it contributes to overall business domain, and how it contributes to overall business domain, strategy, and how it maps to overall domains, and how they contribute to overall business, including individual domains, and how
strategy. strategy. Has a basic understanding of adjacent market trends. Has a thorough understanding of business strategy. they contribute to overall business strategy.
teams' business domains. adjacent teams' strategies and how they map to
their team and interaction points.

Business Acumen
Strategic Impact & Strategy
License: This
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
document is licensed
International (CCY BY 4.0)
under
Attribute / Theme (27)
Key area (5) Competency
value (15) (Competency)
Engineering Competency Matrix Guidelines & FAQ E1 E2 E3 E4 E5 E6
Title Associate Engineer Engineer Senior Engineer Staff Engineer Senior Staff Engineer Principal Engineer
Focus execution of work facilitating, guiding, mentoring others in areas of work
scaling of
within task within epic within team within team & with team's business stakeholders across several teams across organization
competencies
Strategic work n/a (not applicable at this level) Understands the organization's engineering Understands the organization's engineering Collaborates and decides on their team's Usually involved in strategic organizational Leads strategic organizational decisions and
strategy. strategy. Usually involved in discussions about engineering work based on organization's decisions and plans. Leads cross-team strategic plans. Consistently works at a strategic level,
the implications for their team. engineering strategy, together with their efforts, influencing decisions to achieve cross- influencing decisions to achieve organizational
Business Acumen
Strategic Impact & Strategy
teammates and senior engineers. Sometimes team alignment on major goals. alignment on major goals.
involved in work on organizational engineering
strategy.
Product Thinking Understands basic utility of the product. Understands product area of focus, how it fits Thoroughly understands the business model in Evaluates and creates new product features in Recognizes product opportunities and Actively seeks to create or redefine roadmaps
into the overall business, and sometimes makes relation to their current product focus area. collaboration with the product team. Regularly differentiators in relation to the competition. across the organization with product & business
improvement suggestions for it. Sometimes participates in roadmap feedback participates in the creation of the team roadmap Often helps refine roadmaps across teams based counterparts.
with product team. Looks for opportunities to and ensuing feedback. Simplifies product and on technical strategy & constraints. Helps to
simplify product & technical design. technical design through proactive conversations. define & create new product abilities by
changing technical strategy or constraints.