I recently met someone who had been a software development manager in his past career but had now changed role. He thought that being a software development manager was the worst thing you could be in the software industry due to the pressure exerted on you from management above, team members below, and other stakeholders elsewhere in the organisation.

I’ve been a software development manager before and I certainly recognised those pressures. However, I couldn’t agree that it was the worst job in the software industry.

Sure, it’s not always great being stuck in the middle like this or dealing with the legacy of those who’ve gone before, but I feel that the position can offer a great upside, particularly when everything comes together. As the overall manager you also have a significant voice in how the team goes about its daily development work.

Also, other jobs have their own pros and cons…