Product Engineers Drive Business Impact Beyond Technical Execution

Key Quotes

"if you are an engineer who actually comes and asks me tell me what to do you already failed the test it came to me in a month and told me that's not an important problem the best idea should win irrespective of hierarchy to go to a staff engineer you need to lead an engineering team of like 10 people that's like a meme the reality is it doesn't matter we will celebrate engineering depth we will celebrate impact you're an ic engineer you could get the most highest level by having an impact on the business as you level up a software engineer your scope responsibilities and impact they all increase and you become more of a product engineer as you understand your customer domain your business deliverables and you measure your results"

Praveen Murugesan argues that the traditional path to senior engineering roles, often involving managing large teams, is a "meme." He emphasizes that true advancement, even to Staff Engineer, is driven by engineering depth and business impact, regardless of hierarchical leadership. Murugesan suggests that as a software engineer progresses, their responsibilities expand, transforming them into a "product engineer" who understands customer needs and business outcomes.

"from a product engineering perspective i think the main thing is you are already responsible for a product that you're shipping to customers or you're working on a product that's shipping to customers so you actually get like you know the direct connection to the customer problem right so i would say like effective product engineers who i've seen like effectively grow really well or people who actually understand the impact of their work and they want to really understand the why of like what am i doing and like you know why should i do this particular like work it's something they deeply understand the context for like they partner with product managers really effectively they're not necessarily people who are like waiting to be told what to do right"

Murugesan explains that a product engineer's core differentiator is their direct responsibility for a product shipped to customers, granting them a connection to the customer's problems. He highlights that successful product engineers understand the impact of their work, deeply grasp the "why" behind their tasks, and actively partner with product managers, rather than passively waiting for instructions. This proactive engagement with context and customer problems is key to their growth.

"i think about product management is a lot more of like an 80 role is actually customer facing or outward facing not your internal operations or management of a project yeah like project management is a very different thing and it's not the job of a product manager sometimes people confuse this and the best companies usually leave to managing an individual project to internal people like a technical dri or an engineering manager in most cases"

Murugesan distinguishes product management from project management, stating that product management is primarily an outward-facing role focused on customer needs and business opportunities. He clarifies that project management is a distinct function, often handled by technical DRIs (Directly Responsible Individuals) or engineering managers, rather than product managers. This separation ensures product managers can focus on strategic customer engagement and defining the "why" behind product development.

"if you are an engineer who actually comes and asks me tell me what to do you already failed the test like my expectation is we'll build you an environment where like you actually have access to customers you understand the business strategy you actually like you know have access to all the data from what's happening internally in terms of product usage etc we want people to actually come to us and tell us what to do not necessarily like we prescribing like you know this is what you need to do and that's the type of engineers that are going to thrive like you know it's at samsara today but also i think in the industry over time"

Murugesan expresses his expectation that engineers should proactively identify problems and propose solutions, rather than waiting for direction. He emphasizes that the ideal environment provides engineers with access to customer insights, business strategy, and product usage data, empowering them to drive initiatives. Murugesan believes that engineers who come forward with their own ideas and solutions are the ones who will thrive, both at Samsara and in the broader industry.

"one is a little bit of an obsession to understand the impact of the work that i'm doing like you know and it's actually extremely fulfilling when you do that and i would say like you know so that's something that i think i would encourage people to really lean in and understand why am i doing what am i doing like answer your why like you know and so you find the work that you actually like you know enjoy doing the most and then while you do it demonstrate curiosity and focus"

Murugesan summarizes his career advice by highlighting three core elements: an obsession with understanding the impact of one's work, demonstrating curiosity, and maintaining focus. He finds personal fulfillment in understanding the "why" behind his actions and encourages others to do the same to find work they enjoy. Murugesan believes that combining this drive with curiosity and focus leads to greater success and enjoyment in one's professional endeavors.