As with many titles in software engineering, “tech lead” lacks a common definition. The best I can do is draw from my own experience and the experience of others. My job as tech lead was to continue to write code, but with the added responsibilities of representing the group to management, vetting our plans for feature delivery, and dealing with a lot of the details of the project management process. I could be the tech lead, despite not being the most senior person, because I was willing and able to take on the responsibilities of the role, while the rest of my team were more interested in
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