Leveling
Your level is defined by the impact you own. Here is how the two tracks work and how you grow.
Leveling at Hardal
At Hardal your level is defined by one thing: the impact you own.
Not your title, not your tenure, not how long you have been here. The bigger the problem you are trusted with and the more you decide on your own, the higher your level. Everything else follows from that.
We use two tracks. Both grow impact, in different ways. On the IC track you grow it through your own craft and the scope you own directly. On the Manager track you grow it through the people and the function you lead. Neither is above the other. Moving into management is a change in role, not a promotion, and a senior IC and a manager can hold the same scope and the same pay band.
IC track (L1 to L6)
- L1 · Task level. Delivers defined work with guidance.
- L2 · Project level. Owns a full workstream and its technical choices.
- L3 · Domain level. Owns a functional area and shapes its approach.
- L4 · Team level. Raises others and sets the standard.
- L5 · Company level. Drives impact across functions and owns strategy.
- L6 · Industry level. Externally recognised. Moves the whole company forward.
Manager track (M1 to M3)
- M1 · Team lead. Leads 2 to 5 people and owns their output. Same scope as L4.
- M2 · Function lead. Owns a full function, its hiring and its culture. Same scope as L5.
- M3 · VP / C level. Leads multiple functions. Same scope as L6. Rare, and only needed once we are around 30 to 40+ people.
How you grow
You reach the next level when you are already operating at its impact, consistently. A promotion recognises that shift, it does not cause it. The lines above are the honest picture of what each level owns, and your manager can walk you through where you stand.
Each level maps to a pay band. See the Pay Philosophy for how the two connect.