On Stanier (2020), 15th chapter:
Dual career ladder
Also known as Y-shaped. It describes the career path for professions that start in a single thread and then branch into two. The software development disciplines can serve as a good example:
_ Individual contributor (IC) track (LN + 1...LY)
/
Software developer (L1..LN) -
\_ Management track (LN + 1...LZ)Both paths should have similar pay ranges. To get a bit more familiar with this example, go to About being an individual contributor versus being a manager
It's worth mentioning that this might not be a one-way street: Engineer/Manager pendulum
Career progression frameworks
Career frameworks ensure that career paths within a company are clear and that employees have actionable steps for moving between levels. Here are some common traits of career frameworks:
- Define formalized level numbers (I.e, L1 to LN)
- Levels should have similar salary ranges within the same disciplines (I.e, this should be the case in the example given here Dual career ladder)
- Offer development possibilities (again, see Dual career ladder or About being an individual contributor versus being a manager)
- Define essential aspects for your company (i.e., "Impact", "Culture", "Expertise", "Influence", etc) and define expectations for these at each level
- IMPORTANT: Try to not define too many :)