> I think digging into the roots of SWE's not being respected is worth discussing. Are doctors, lawyers, or surgeons viewed the same way?
Those are three very different things with different growth paths. But as someone who went from engineer to entrepreneur and is now on the product side, I can say that software people, almost as a rule, focus on stuff that doesn't matter for promotion. It's really frustrating sometimes.
Modulo pathological things like corporate politics, companies care about profit and loss. Grow the business, make the money roll in, and your chances of advancement approach unity. But far too many software people devote their time to "honing their tools", when, to the company, the entire tools budget is just a cost center. Identifying as a "tool person" at all just means that you're climbing a greasy pole. This is true even in "pure" software companies -- the difference between working on a business-critical initiative and, say, code-review tooling, can be everything to your career path.
Just to emphasize this point, consider the growth paths for the other careers you mentioned. Lawyers get paid well overall, but making partner depends on bringing in business. Surgeons and doctors are a bit more complex due to licensing scarcity, but if you know anyone in private practice, it's the same gig: get clients, grow the business. Meet the minimum threshold for technical competency, and nobody really cares if you're the best surgeon in the state, so long as you're bringing in patients.
The world revolves around money. Software is relevant only to the extent that it makes money.
Do you really respect doctors for growing their business? I would look down at a doctor whose mind is on money. When I really need a doctor, I sure do look for the best, not the one with the most patients.
your opinion of doctors is probably off. i'm married to a doctor (in the US) and i would say 4/5 doctors i meet spend most of their time talking and thinking about money. there are lots of reasons for this (some valid), but assume your doctor has money on the mind
Well, let's hope they still think of the interest of their patients first or that the incentives are aligned. Also, in the US, everything is more money oriented than in Europe which may explain the difference of views here. I grew up in a family of doctors and they didn't see their job as a business, but rather as a public service.
Those are three very different things with different growth paths. But as someone who went from engineer to entrepreneur and is now on the product side, I can say that software people, almost as a rule, focus on stuff that doesn't matter for promotion. It's really frustrating sometimes.
Modulo pathological things like corporate politics, companies care about profit and loss. Grow the business, make the money roll in, and your chances of advancement approach unity. But far too many software people devote their time to "honing their tools", when, to the company, the entire tools budget is just a cost center. Identifying as a "tool person" at all just means that you're climbing a greasy pole. This is true even in "pure" software companies -- the difference between working on a business-critical initiative and, say, code-review tooling, can be everything to your career path.
Just to emphasize this point, consider the growth paths for the other careers you mentioned. Lawyers get paid well overall, but making partner depends on bringing in business. Surgeons and doctors are a bit more complex due to licensing scarcity, but if you know anyone in private practice, it's the same gig: get clients, grow the business. Meet the minimum threshold for technical competency, and nobody really cares if you're the best surgeon in the state, so long as you're bringing in patients.
The world revolves around money. Software is relevant only to the extent that it makes money.