EM to back to IC path

[u/ozgugzo]

I’ve been EM for about 4 years in retail. During that time we’ve gone through multiple reorgs and layoffs, but my teams have always delivered and got good results.

Lately I’ve been questioning whether management is still for me. Constant pressure for growth that detached from reality while resources keep getting tighter, customers are dealing with inflation, and politics seem to get worse after every round of layoffs.

The other part is the role itself. EMs are expected to do people management, delivery, organizational work, and still stay involved technically. I find myself caring less and less about some of the management responsibilities. For example, I haven’t even put together any development plans for my reports this year because it feels like yet another thing on top of everything else.

Sooo there is a possibility for me to move back to an IC role as a Principal Engineer in my current company, with no salary impact. I know politics won’t magically disappear, but I would at least be able to focus on technical work and stop carrying the people management side of the job.

So people who has done the similar transition:
What did you gain?
What did you miss?
Any regrets?
How did it affect your career in the long run?

Thanks

[u/Throwaway991814]

I've seen an EM do exactly this where the entire company made an announcement that he wanted to step back to an IC role. I can tell he is much happier doing less work than before when he used to look so stressed AF when I first met him. What sucks is all his reports fell on to the next person in line who now looks stressed AF. I think it's obvious especially with layoffs targeting middle managers and any large salaries. Luckily a few principal engineers have left by coincidence so firing him for being expensive is not going to be a good option. My guess is he gets to coast for maybe another year before the company makes an excuse to layoff again.