The map doesn't show Silicon Valley

It's definitely migrating north over the years. Some would argue it's centered in SF now, which I'd disagree with, but I have to admit it's moving that way.

I would argue that for a Distinguished Engineer to have as much impact as a run-of-the-mill VP, they have to be the best at the world at what they do.

I agree, that's why it's lip service when they say that you can progress just as easily on the tech track because they "have the levels available".

I agree completely. And as someone who has had senior engineering roles and senior engineering management roles at different times, I'd argue that the reason management is paid more is simple supply and demand. For a very large majority of people, managing people is basically a more difficult, stressful, and shittier job. Not that there aren't a small(er) group of people who really love management, but management salaries have to be higher because, if they were the same as corresponding IC levels, it would be very difficult to coax people into management.

Huh, I'd argue more folks are interested in management then are being engineers.

I’d argue that it’s impossibke to compare a Distinguished Engineer to a VP because the job functions are vastly different. Using a vague measurement like “impact” doesn’t overcome this.

I agree i’ve never heard an understandable explanation as to why a company with 1 or 2 principal engineer level employees can have hundreds of VPs.

Not at all. The discussion of whether a person is a senior or mid level developer can be completely separate from a discussion of whether the company pays fairly for those positions.

I logged in to look at my usage history, because I thought "I can't possibly use that little" when I saw the 3 month average. I don't. I use about 2x what they said my average was. Anyone else see this?

My best guess is the averaged October's data so far with the past two months.

Switch jobs. About 2 years experience is a good time for a switch. You probably won't find a $5k/month raise, but you might get a $5k/3 month raise.

Seeing as this is his/her first job, it'll likely be a 50%ish pay bump.