AI was a big topic at the EvolveDigital Summit last week. AI is also a big part of my day-to-day work. I've been thinking more and more about what it means for me as a software engineer.

The "AI bubble" might burst (or maybe not), but the fundamental shift in development workflows has happened. The tools are here, and they aren't leaving. We are, though, witnessing a massive refactoring of roles. This change isn't the end of human coding; it's a shift in focus.

• Software Engineers → Agent Orchestrators. Software engineers will still write the critical, complex logic and heavily review output. Software engineers will delegate the initial scaffolding, boilerplate, and low-level work to autonomous agents. The role shifts toward architecture, validation, and directing digital workers.
• Managers → Leaders. The concept of "management" is rooted in the industrial idea that managers must strictly manage resources (people) for them to be productive.

To remain competitive, organizations must adapt their expectations. If engineers are managing the digital workforce, the business no longer needs resource managers. It requires leaders capable of driving high-level vision while engineers handle the execution.

The hierarchy is flattening, but responsibilities are increasing across the board.

This blog was originally a post on LinkedIn.

Diagram generated via Gemini via Nano Banana Pro based on this post.