Career management

Most tech careers drift. Your's doesn't have to!

The tech industry rewards those who know how to position themselves, not just those who work hard.

A structured multi-session coaching program for Senior Managers, Directors, and VPs in tech — built around the five decisions that define where your career goes from here: the right role, the right trajectory, the right comp, the right promotion, and the right relationships above you.

This program is designed to give you clarity, strategy, and execution—so you can make deliberate career moves that lead to real advancement, stronger positioning, and higher compensation.

Am I actually in the right job?
Or am I staying because it's comfortable, the comp is okay, and leaving feels complicated?

Am I being paid what I'm worth?
I've never really negotiated. My salary has just… happened. I suspect I am behind the market.

Where is my career actually going?
I'm good at my job. But I don't have a plan. Each move has been reactive. That feels like a problem.

How do I manage upward?

My manager's manager barely knows my name. I have no idea how to change that without looking political.

Why haven't I been promoted yet?
I do great work. I know I do. So why is someone else getting the VP title?

How do I handle a difficult manager?
My manager is not a bad person. But they're not helping me grow. I need to change the dynamic without burning the relationship.

THE PROGRAM

Five Modules. one complete career strategy

Each module is a dedicated focus area — covered across one or more sessions depending on complexity. The program is structured, but the pace and sequencing adapt to where you are and what's most urgent.

Module 1: Are You in the Right Job?

Role clarity - fit - opportunity cost

Before we build a strategy for getting ahead, we need to answer the most fundamental question: Is this the right arena? Most professionals skip this conversation — and spend years climbing the wrong ladder brilliantly.

This module provides a structured framework for honestly evaluating your current role and deciding whether to go deeper or move elsewhere.

WHAT WE COVER

The four dimensions of job fit: growth, impact, culture, and compensation — and how to score yours honestly

How to identify whether you're underperforming, coasting, or simply in the wrong role
The opportunity cost calculation: what is staying costing you in comp, growth, and career trajectory
How to make a clear stay-or-go decision based on evidence, not anxiety

DELIVERABLE

Job Fit Scorecard — a written evaluation of your current role across all four dimensions

Carnegie principle applied: "The person who seeks wisdom from others is far stronger than the one who pretends to have all the answers." This module begins with radical honesty — about what you want and whether you're on the path to it.

Module 4: Getting promoted

Promotion strategy - timing - the case for you

Promotions don't go to the most deserving person in the room. They go to the person who has been clearly positioned for the role, whose manager is actively advocating for them, and who has made the case so clearly that saying yes is easier than saying not yet. This module builds that case from the ground up.

WHATE WE COVER

How promotion decisions actually get made at your company — and what most candidates don't know about the process
Building a promotion case: the evidence, the narrative, and the timing that makes it undeniable
How to have the promotion conversation — with your manager, with HR, and indirectly with the people who influence the decision
What to do when you've been passed over — how to get honest feedback and reset your trajectory without losing momentum
When to stop waiting and use an external offer to force the conversation

DELIVERABLE

Written promotion case document + conversation script

Carnegie principle applied: "Let the other person feel that the idea is his or hers." The best promotion conversations end with your manager feeling like they championed you — not like you lobbied them.

Module 2: career advancement strategy

Positioning - visibility - the VP transition

Getting to the next level isn't about working harder — it's about being seen differently. This module builds your 12-to-24-month advancement roadmap: what you need to be known for, who needs to know it, and how to position yourself for the role you want before it's even open.

WHAT WE COVER

The VP-level identity shift: what it means to lead instead of execute, and how to demonstrate it before you have the title
Visibility strategy: how to be known for the right things by the right people without playing politics
The narrative you need: how senior leaders above you should describe you in a succession conversation — and how to shape that narrative now
Identifying and closing the specific gaps between where you are and where you want to be

DELIVERABLE

12-month Career Advancement Roadmap with milestone check-ins

Carnegie principle applied: "Talk in terms of the other person's interests." Your advancement case is always built around the organisation's needs — never around your wants. This module shows you exactly how to frame it.

Module 5: Managing UP

Upward influence - executive relationships - political intelligence

The most underrated skill at the senior level — and the one that separates the people who advance from the people who plateau.

Managing upward isn't political maneuvering. It's learning how to communicate with the people above you in a way that builds trust, removes obstacles, and makes you the obvious choice when opportunities arise. This module teaches you how to do it authentically, using Carnegie's influence framework.

WHAT WE COVER

How to understand what your manager actually cares about — and how to align your work with their priorities in a way that feels genuine
The skip-level relationship: how to build a genuine relationship with your manager's manager without undermining your direct manager
How to deliver difficult news upward without losing credibility or trust
Managing a difficult manager: how to change a broken dynamic, document your impact, and protect your career if the relationship can't be fixed
How to become the person senior leaders think of first when an opportunity opens up

DELIVERABLE

Stakeholder influence map + upward communication playbook

Carnegie principle applied: "You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you." Managing upward starts with genuine curiosity about what the people above you are trying to solve.

Module 3: compensation negotiation

Market value - internal raises - total compensation

Most senior tech professionals have never had a real compensation conversation. They've accepted what was offered, taken modest annual increases, and assumed that's what the market dictates. This module teaches you how to understand your true market value, raise the conversation internally with confidence, and secure comp that reflects what you're actually worth — with or without an external offer.

WHAT WE COVER

Benchmarking your total comp against real market data — base, bonus, equity, and benefits — for your specific role, level, and company stage

How to raise a compensation conversation internally without it feeling like a threat or an ultimatum
The six compensation levers at the SM/VP level — and which ones your company has the most flexibility on
How to time the conversation for maximum leverage — and what triggers to use that make yes easier for your manager
Scripted language for the conversation, tailored to your specific situation

DELIVERABLE

Compensation Strategy Document + scripted conversation guide

Carnegie principle applied: "The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it." We don't negotiate through confrontation — we negotiate through clarity, market data, and framing the ask as a shared interest.

What's Different?

This is not generic career advice.

This is based on real-world experience in the tech industry—working with professionals, hiring managers, and leadership teams.

It’s practical, direct, and focused on outcomes:

Clear decisions
Better positioning
Measurable career progress

The Outcome

By the end of these five sessions, you will:

Know whether you’re in the right role
Have a concrete plan to advance your career
Be equipped to negotiate and increase your compensation

No more guessing. No more waiting.

How It Works

5 focused sessions (1 hour each)
Delivered virtually
Includes practical tools, frameworks, and templates

ready to take control of your career?

This program connects to everything else we do.

Career Development is the foundation. If a new opportunity emerges during the program, we move seamlessly into interview preparation or offer negotiation — with a coach who already knows your full career story. Clients who use all three services report the most significant combined outcomes: the right role, performed brilliantly, negotiated to its ceiling.

Choose the model that fits you.

CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

All five modules - all deliverables - ongoing support

FULL PROGRAM INCLUDES

All five modules covered across dedicated 60-minute sessions
Five written deliverables: Job Fit Scorecard, Career Roadmap, Comp Strategy, Promotion Case, Stakeholder Playbook
Unlimited email access to your coach between sessions
Scripted conversation guides for comp raises, promotion asks, and manager conversations
Sequencing that adapts to what's most urgent for your situation
Seamless transition to Interview Mastery or Offer Negotiation if an external opportunity arises
Self-paced access to The Playbook curriculum (Career Development course included)

STARTER

Single Module

$750

One module of your choice. Best if you have a specific, urgent focus - e.g., compensation negotiation or promotion strategy

FULL PROGRAM

All five modules

$2,995

The complete program across all five areas. Best for professionals who want a full career strategy, not just a fix for one problem.

This program put me back on track

I was at a standstill in my career and needed help to forge a path toward the career I truly wanted. I was amazed by the depth to which Better Life Decision went to truly uncover and believe in my talents, understand what I really wanted out of my career, and develop the clarity and purpose we shared. It gave me back my confidence and my resolve to design a career path that propelled me forward with a renewed sense of energy I had lost along the way. And they were there and very responsive all along the way. Having a professional with all his experience backing you is invaluable.

Azucena Monroy