Dual-track · HS/SS weighting · Scope of Influence · Ownership · Assessment tool
A career matrix (also called a career grid or career ladder) is a structured framework that outlines the skills, knowledge, and experience required for each level within a job family — giving employees a clear roadmap and managers a consistent, transparent tool for evaluation and promotion.
Employees see potential trajectories and understand what's required to advance.
Clear milestones help employees set specific, actionable development goals.
Consistent criteria for assessing readiness for promotion, reducing bias.
Identifies internal talent pipelines so key roles can be filled from within.
Guides training, mentoring, and coaching based on what each level requires.
Visible growth paths motivate employees to stay and excel.
Merit-based guidelines reduce favouritism and subjectivity.
Sharing the matrix attracts candidates interested in long-term growth.
Organizations use different structural models depending on size, industry, and goals. The three most common:
The Y-Model (Dual Track) — visual overview:
The Buffer Engineering Circular Framework — 8 levels:
Two of the most powerful dimensions to add to any career matrix — they answer how broadly someone's work reaches and how independently they operate. Based on the Buffer Engineering framework, these dimensions make the difference between a matrix that describes skills and one that describes impact.
Describes the breadth of a person's reach — from themselves and their tasks, to their project and peers, to their team, to the whole organization. As levels increase, so does the expected scope.
Describes autonomy and accountability — from no ownership (actively being developed) to co-ownership with guidance, to full ownership of domains, roadmaps, and outcomes.
| Level | Scope of Influence | How Work Is Conducted | Ownership | Avg. Timeframe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Software Engineer | Themselves and their tasks | Makes a contribution through completing well-specced tasks. Receives closer guidance and technical mentoring to avoid becoming blocked. Not yet learning in a self-directed way. | No Ownership This person is learning and being actively developed by others. | 6–12 months to SE II |
| Software Engineer II | Their project and their peers | Works on the project as a whole. Makes steady progress on tasks within the project. Works directly in parallel with peers. Self-directed learning process. Knows when to ask for help when becoming stuck — does not go down rabbit holes. | Co-Owns Co-owns an area with guidance & takes initiative (e.g. fixes bugs unpromoted). | 1–3 years to Senior |
| Senior Engineer + | Their team and beyond | Works across teams. Defines approach, not just executes. Mentors others. Drives quality and process improvements. Self-sufficient and unblocks others. | Full Ownership Owns a domain or feature area. Accountable for outcomes, not just tasks. | 3–5 years |
| Lead / Principal + | Studio / Organization | Sets direction for multiple teams. Influences architecture, process, and culture. External-facing where applicable. Multiplies the output of the whole team. | Full Ownership Accountable for entire domains or projects. Defines the roadmap. | Ongoing |
Enable the Scope of Influence, Ownership Level, and Avg. Timeframe columns in Setup, then fill them in per level using the editor panel at the top of the Edit Competencies tab.
| Job Family | Key Skills | Typical Progression |
|---|---|---|
| Game Designer | Game mechanics, level design, prototyping, systems design | Junior → Designer → Senior → Lead → Principal / Creative Director |
| Game Programmer | Unreal/Unity, C++, debugging, architecture | Intern → Associate → Intermediate I/II → Senior I/II → Lead I/II → Principal → Technical Director |
| Game Artist | 2D/3D art, animation, textures, digital tools | Junior Artist → Artist → Senior → Lead → Art Director |
| Game Producer | Project management, resource allocation, risk assessment | Associate → Producer → Senior → Lead → Executive Producer |
| QA / Game Tester | Attention to detail, bug tracking, test planning, automation | QA I → QA II → Senior QA → Principal QA |
| Game Writer | Narrative, dialogue, world-building, character development | Junior Writer → Writer → Senior → Lead → Narrative Director |
The THUD (Jennifer & Joshua Howard, 2011 — CC BY-NC-SA) is a freely available toolkit developed for game development studios that provides a universal, discipline-agnostic competency framework with five behavioural levels describing observable behaviours. Use the THUD template button to load it fully pre-filled into the builder.
Knowledge — Depth of technical/specialty expertise.
Application — Time management and priority juggling.
Development — Learning new methods and tracking industry trends.
Presentation — Verbal clarity, confidence, and written quality.
Transparency — Proactively sharing status and issues.
Collaboration — Building trust, sharing information, resolving conflict.
Research & Analysis — Identifying relevant information.
Ingenuity — Creative, practical solution-finding.
Judgement — Pragmatic decisions under constraints.
Organization — Planning and priority coordination.
Accuracy — Reliable estimates and quality results.
Productivity — Focus, deadlines, and autonomy.
Autonomy — Working independently, unblocking others.
Passion — Enthusiasm and positive work ethic.
Initiative — Acting without prompting; taking on challenges.
People managers only.
Direction — Setting clear goals and monitoring progress.
Development — Coaching, feedback, and delegation.
Leadership — Motivating and leading by example.