Software Engineer to Sales Engineer
Hello everyone I'm a SWE with 2.5 years of experience under my belt and I've been seriously thinking about making the jump to Sales Engineering.
I enjoy the technical side of my work but I've realized over time that I'm way more energized when I get to interact with people. I feel like my communication skills/ability to make relationships is heavily underutilized in my current position and I feel like that's my golden ticket to the big bucks. (correct me if this line of thinking is incorrect). So, SE feels like the natural intersection of both worlds for me.
A few things I'm curious about from people who've made a similar move or are currently in the field:
- How common is the SWE to SE pipeline? Do hiring managers view a purely technical background as a plus or a red flag?
- Any advice on how to position yourself when applying? Should I be targeting companies whose products align with my existing tech stack?
- What do you wish you knew before making the switch?
For context, my background is mainly in .NET (C#), SAP ABAP, some ETL stuff (Informatica). Happy to share more details if it helps.
Would really appreciate any insight from people who've been through it!