The Missing Cipher

Free guide

Senior Engineer Promotion Guide: Show your work and make your case

Working hard won't get you promoted on its own. This free guide from The Missing Cipher helps you prove you're already doing senior work, in language the people who decide can repeat.

  • What senior actually looks likeEight skills, and how each one looks before and after you start working at a senior level. For many engineers, that happens well before the title does.
  • The Success Statement worksheetTurn your work into proof your manager can take straight into a promotion conversation. Block 30 minutes a month on your calendar, and no win goes unrecorded.
  • An AI skill that finds your workPulls tickets, code, docs, email and chat into one list, so you don't have to go hunting for your evidence.

Get the free guide

We'll email you a confirmation link first. Click it and the guide lands in your inbox. Three pages, fillable PDF.

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What's inside

Three pages you'll come back to every review cycle.

Page 1: What senior actually looks like, eight skill cards comparing before senior and senior.
The senior skills mapWhere you are today, and what senior looks like.
Page 2: Document Your Success worksheet with the format I improved this thing by this measurable amount using this method.
Document your successThe Success Statement worksheet, fillable.
Page 3: Pull your work from every tool, an AI skill and its prompt.
Pull your work from every toolAn AI skill and its ready-to-run prompt.

What engineers are saying

A perspective change to help see yourself as a brand… and how to show off your improvements and successes.
Cesar, talk attendee
Her feedback was clear and focused and helped me understand concrete actions to take to get to where I want to be.
Catherine K., coaching client
I will work on creating better success stories to elevate my brand so I can take my career to the next level.
Farshad G., people leader

From the book

The Missing Cipher: The Field Guide for Senior Software Engineers

Michelle Brenner is a senior software engineer, conference speaker and author with 16 years in the industry. The guide comes from her book, built on interviews with engineers across companies and levels. The book has 42 more worksheets and all 60 AI skills.

See the book