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Designing and Implementing a Comprehensive Research Software Engineer Career Ladder: A Case Study from Princeton University

Ian A. Cosden, Elizabeth Holtz, Joel U. Bretheim

TL;DR

This case study describes the design and implementation of a comprehensive RSE career ladder spanning Associate through Principal levels, with parallel team-lead and managerial tracks, and outlines the guiding principles, competency framework, Human Resources alignment, and implementation process.

Abstract

Research Software Engineers (RSEs) have become indispensable to computational research and scholarship. The fast rise of RSEs in higher education and the trend of universities to be slow creating or adopting models for new technology roles means a lack of structured career pathways that recognize technical mastery, scholarly impact, and leadership growth. In response to an immense demand for RSEs at Princeton University, and dedicated funding to grow the RSE group at least two-fold, Princeton was forced to strategize how to cohesively define job descriptions to match the rapid hiring of RSE positions but with enough flexibility to recognize the unique nature of each individual position. This case study describes our design and implementation of a comprehensive RSE career ladder spanning Associate through Principal levels, with parallel team-lead and managerial tracks. We outline the guiding principles, competency framework, Human Resources (HR) alignment, and implementation process, including engagement with external consultants and mapping to a standard job leveling framework utilizing market benchmarks. We share early lessons learned and outcomes including improved hiring efficiency, clearer promotion pathways, and positive reception among staff.

Designing and Implementing a Comprehensive Research Software Engineer Career Ladder: A Case Study from Princeton University

TL;DR

This case study describes the design and implementation of a comprehensive RSE career ladder spanning Associate through Principal levels, with parallel team-lead and managerial tracks, and outlines the guiding principles, competency framework, Human Resources alignment, and implementation process.

Abstract

Research Software Engineers (RSEs) have become indispensable to computational research and scholarship. The fast rise of RSEs in higher education and the trend of universities to be slow creating or adopting models for new technology roles means a lack of structured career pathways that recognize technical mastery, scholarly impact, and leadership growth. In response to an immense demand for RSEs at Princeton University, and dedicated funding to grow the RSE group at least two-fold, Princeton was forced to strategize how to cohesively define job descriptions to match the rapid hiring of RSE positions but with enough flexibility to recognize the unique nature of each individual position. This case study describes our design and implementation of a comprehensive RSE career ladder spanning Associate through Principal levels, with parallel team-lead and managerial tracks. We outline the guiding principles, competency framework, Human Resources (HR) alignment, and implementation process, including engagement with external consultants and mapping to a standard job leveling framework utilizing market benchmarks. We share early lessons learned and outcomes including improved hiring efficiency, clearer promotion pathways, and positive reception among staff.
Paper Structure (10 sections, 4 figures)

This paper contains 10 sections, 4 figures.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Background and Motivation
  3. Design Principles
  4. Career Ladder Architecture
  5. Language Framework
  6. Implementation Process
  7. Discussion
  8. Adoption Recommendations
  9. Conclusion
  10. Acknowledgments

Figures (4)

  • Figure 1: The Princeton RSE Career Ladder. The top (green) track represents the Individual Contributor (IC) Track. Positions along the IC track have no formal management or supervision responsibilities, the middle (blue) track splits from the IC track to include formal management. The bottom (purple) track represents the RSE group leadership positions and are located on an entirely separate track from the RSEs above.
  • Figure 2: Responsibility distribution across all roles. These were the approximate percentages used in standard job descriptions and leveling.
  • Figure 3: Example responsibilities and qualifications for RSE career levels. Notes this is a subset of only two example responsibilities and qualifications. This demonstrates the relative changes between levels, rather than an exhaustive description. Lead and Principal levels are split into the Team Lead, with people management responsibilities, and Individual Contributor (IC) tracks.
  • Figure 4: The Princeton RSE Group membership over time annotated with career ladder milestones. The blue line represents a count of all individuals in the RSE Group, including RSEs of all levels and the leadership team of directors. The orange line represents a count of the subset in the leadership track. Upticks represent new hires and additions while downticks represent departures.