Career Growth Levels 📈

Why we have career growth levels at SWS

Give team members more clarity on their level in the business and what is expected of them at that level or to develop.
Provide a nuanced, tangible framework for continuous growth.
Share more visibility on progression and growth options.
Improve forecasting on what level to hire people into the business at.
Enable managers to give clarity to reports on milestones to progress.

How does SWS think about career progression?

Everyone can grow their career by going down two career tracks:

Individual Contributor (IC) Generalist to Specialist
- Focus on building bigger + better systems, projects and processes
- Becoming a thought leader and specialist in your role
Manager(M): Lead to Leader
- Focus on managing bigger and better teams
- Hiring, team organisation, and helping people progress in the business

Individual Contributor vs Manager. Which way to go?

Manager track isn’t necessarily better than Individual Contributor. They have different focus areas and any person at Simply Wall St should feel that they can keep growing in the organisation whichever track they decide to follow. Therefore, we recommend you to decide which track to go down based on the type of work you enjoy doing as there’s enough scope for each track to grow, learn and have a positive impact within the business. In terms of compensation, both tracks run in parallel and compensation packages are of a similar level.

What does typical career path look like?

Career path will have a number of levels through which to progress, as well as expectations at each level.

** Please note the engineering track is slightly different - see below

🧗🏻‍♀️ Engineering Career Track

Typical Career Pathway

Promotion Principles

Promotions are descriptive not prescriptive: We promote people when they have demonstrated that they are consistently performing at the next level. Promotions don’t unlock new responsibilities; the new responsibilities and increased scope come first and then we recognise it with a promotion. IC1 & IC2 levels can progress after 6 months with SWS but any role higher must be in their current level and next level for a minimum of 6 months before progressing. M4 (exec) is only for exec level.

Promotion decisions are structured and rigorous: To ensure calibration across the company and to mitigate individual biases, we take a structured approach to evaluating cases for promotion. A manager, with input from the promotion candidate, provide evidence to support the promotion, as well as areas for development and peer feedback. A panel of calibrated engineers and managers at or above the target level then reviews the packet and votes on the promotion. Panelists are trained on unconscious bias every cycle and use a checklist and a rubric to help interrupt bias in the review.

Extra ESOP: For all levels, excluding “Executive” and “Head”, the promotion option grant occurs at the next retention grant date (2-year cycle). Leadership team also has discretion in adjusting grants in scenarios such as substantial role and responsibility changes.

Mastering a level before progressing: Levels are not a fixed point. Professional Growth is not just about advancing from one level to the next, it is also about the rich learning that happens while developing and mastering the capabilities within your level.

IC Track: Generalist to Specialist

Skills	IC1 Junior Learner	IC2 Mid Doer	IC3 Senior Driver	IC5 Principal Expert

Skills	IC1 Junior Learner	IC2 Mid Doer	IC3 Senior Driver	IC5 Principal Expert
Expertise	Beginning your career Little previous professional experience. Encountering many challenges for the first time, and focused on using these encounters as an opportunity to learn and improve your skills. You are able to independently solve simple problems but need support for more senior team members to tackle more difficult problems. Focus on your attributes, learning ability and drive/motivation to be successful in the role.	Developing professional You have developed core skills and knowledge within your domain. You solve problems that are of moderate difficulty & scope. You are able to independently solve moderate problems, and are also working closely with your manager or senior team members to tackle more difficult problems with strong support. You are proactive in learning about best practices and tools. You are now focused on mastering your craft.	Experienced professional Role expertise, having wide-ranging experience within your domain. Uses professional concepts and company objectives to resolve complex issues. You have a consistent track record of delivering within your domain and consistently solve problems that your peers and leads agree are of significant difficulty & scope. At this level, you are a prolific individual contributor. You support your decisions with empirical data. You also provide some mentorship to more junior team members. You are deciding if you want to progress towards management or IC track.	Expert in the field Broad expertise and/or unique knowledge within your role, domain & industry, uses skills to contribute to development of company objectives and principles and to achieve goals. You are able to solve open-ended and ambiguous problems that most others at SWS would not be able to solve, and for which the path forward is far from clear. At this level, you are the master of your craft and mentoring others in the team.
Impact	“You require more support to solve problems on your own.” Follows standard practices and procedures in analysing situations or data from which answers can be readily obtained. Builds stable working relationships internally.	“You proactively try to solve problems before reaching out for help.” Works on problems of moderate scope. Exercises judgment within defined procedures and practices to determine appropriate action. Networks with senior internal and external personnel in own area of expertise. Builds productive internal/external working relationships. You have demonstrated that you can own and complete well-scoped tasks within a larger project, but may depend on more senior members of your team to help break down and sequence larger projects.	“You leave things better than you found them.” Works on complex issues where analysis of situations or data requires an in-depth evaluation of significant difficulty or scope. Exercises judgment in selecting methods, techniques and evaluation criteria for obtaining results. Networks with key contacts outside own area of expertise. You successfully lead end-to-end projects with little oversight and can break down large projects into smaller tasks with ease and prioritise them correctly. You successfully navigate roadblocks and obstacles that may come up and accurately estimate the time and scope of projects. You consistently identify and implement improvements in your work and the team.	“You are capable of reducing complexity, facilitating cross-functional communication and driving consensus.” Works on significant and unique issues where analysis of situations or data requires an evaluation of intangibles. Exercises independent judgment in methods, techniques and evaluation criteria for obtaining results. Creates formal networks involving coordination among groups. You not only apply industry best practices, but evangelise them within SWS. You are a prolific individual contributor and seen as the owner of many different projects, initiatives, systems or tools. At this level, you are able to identify and suggest projects for you and your team that move SWS closer to its goals and have a track record of identifying and leading improvements for business-critical projects. You can accurately estimate the time and scope of this work, and are able to make and articulate reasoned trade-offs to keep things on track.
Supervision & Leadership	Normally receives detailed instructions on all work.	Normally receives general instructions on routine work, detailed instructions on new projects or assignments.	Determines methods and procedures on new assignments and may coordinate activities of other personnel You regularly seek out opportunities to educate and mentor others. You have a track record of giving feedback to your peers to help them grow and can receive feedback from others unemotionally & constructively.	Acts independently to determine methods and procedures on new or special assignments. May supervise the activities of others. At this level, you are a force multiplier - inspiring and guiding others around you to achieve more, and sharing your expertise to train and grow others within your team.
Communication	You are learning how to communicate the progress of your work with the appropriate stakeholders through the tools and rituals of the team, and are able to flag when progress is blocked and ask for help.	You proactively communicate the progress of your work to your team, and work collaboratively with others to help your whole team grow. Building the skills and confidence required to communicate between teams or cross-functionality. Proactive in asking for feedback and growing within your domain.	You are effective at articulating and analysing trade-offs, and escalating when blocked. You deliver and receive feedback constructively and incorporate it into your future work when it’s provided to you. You keep the company informed of your work and effectively communicate the state and status of projects to key stakeholders. You are capable of understanding and articulating how your goals impact your team and how they support SWS’s goals as a company and are proactive in asking questions to navigate uncertainty or confusion.	You seek out and foster meaningful discussion around your projects and domain of expertise within SWS You can take complex topics within your domain and explain them clearly and succinctly to others. You’re able to identify and pull together the right people to ensure your projects realise their full potential and are able to drive consensus without explicit authority. You are able to articulate and defend why your projects matter to overall business goals and have a track record of balancing risk and success.
Culture	You demonstrate adherence to company values in your work and interactions	You demonstrate adherence to company values in your work and interactions	You lead by example by defining and demonstrating company values in your work to others	You lead by example and serve as a role model for company values; You are a force multiplier of our values

Manager Track: Lead to Leader

Skills	M1 Lead	M2 Manager	M3 Head of	M4 Exec

Skills	M1 Lead	M2 Manager	M3 Head of	M4 Exec
Context	Hands on team lead	Managing small team	Managing multiple teams	Managing whole function
Strategy, Scope, Prioritisation & Process Setting direction and vision of company, OKR and functional team. Ensuring your team understand their role responsibilities, goals & how they can be successful. Setting up the right org structure for the team to thrive achieve their goals. Empowering your team to solve problems, learn independently and understand when to step in and remove roadblocks. Defining how the team work together and optimise their performance.	Helps with process and delivery. Removes roadblocks.	You navigate ambiguity and set scope and prioritisation for the team Anticipates roadblocks	You are one step ahead Requires in-depth knowledge of the functional area, business strategies, and the company’s goals. Set department goals to tie into company goals	You effectively coach others in SWS to articulate and translate company strategy into a concrete roadmap
Leadership Coaching others to unlock their potential. Providing feedback in a constructive way that empowers your team. You oversee and hold your team accountable for the strategy, execution, and timeliness of delivery to company and team initiatives or OKRs.	A portion of time is normally spent performing individual tasks related to success of the team. Generally supervises less senior team members.	You lead a team of individual contributors at various levels and are accountable for their quality of execution, timeliness of delivery, impact, and personal and professional growth	You build and lead multiple teams that move at a high velocity, produce high quality output, and communicate effectively within the division and cross-functionally. You oversee and hold teams and individuals accountable for the quality of strategy, execution, and timeliness of delivery to company and team initiatives or OKRs.	You report directly to the board/CEO.
Interaction & Communication Being curious to find the why Listening & not assuming Influence decision making by asking great questions Leave things better than when you found them	Good communicator	Great communicator	Great storyteller	Inspiring storyteller
DE&I Building trust and psychological safety & inclusivity	Ensure your team is heard and feels heard. Encourages diversity	A strategic partner in advancing DE&I	You lead and work to advance the team and company's DE&I initiatives	You lead and work to advance the team and company's DE&I initiatives
Data Using data to make decisions	Handle of main metrics, basic data literacy	Uses data to make decisions	Uses data for storytelling	Uses data for strategic decisions
Hiring & Onboarding Set team structure and deduct hiring needs Co-ownership of team onboarding with Operations.	Can hire & part of interview process Onboards the team	Set team structure and define hiring needs Onboards the team	Overall department org design and participate in final interviews. Budget planning if no exec.	Manages overall budget & org design forecast. Hires Head of / managers.