Should i pursue a management role or stay hands-on in my technical role?

[Frank63]

I’ve been offered a promotion that would move me into a management role, but I’m hesitant because I genuinely love the hands-on technical work I do now. I’m worried that stepping away from that to focus on people and projects might stall my technical growth and leave me feeling disconnected from the actual work. Has anyone else faced this kind of career crossroads between being an individual contributor and moving into leadership?

[Zoey_S]

I faced that crossroads a few years back and took the promotion into management I did miss the hands on side a lot I tried to keep a small hands on slot every sprint but it fell away as meetings grew I watched my technical growth slow and I started measuring how many hours I kept coding vs how many hours I spent in reviews and roadmaps and it did not feel great

[OliverVM]

That said maybe the issue is not the work type but what you keep control of as a manager It helps to set clear tech goals and carve out time for mentoring and reviews so you stay close to the craft without being blocked by every tiny decision You might trade some hands on time for more impact through your team

[HarperD]

One approach I tried was to pair with a senior engineer and keep one project in my own hands while I led the team I found the mix gave me a bridge but the pressure to deliver through others felt different I kept a code review routine and a weekly demo and that kept some touch points with the work

[William6]

Would a tech lead style path that keeps you coding a chunk of time feel doable or is there a chance the real issue is something else altogether