Principal Mechanical Engineer

Tell me, what you would have done in this situation?

I’m facing one of the toughest career decisions of my life and I genuinely need your collective wisdom. I’ve never posted something this personal before, but after weeks of overthinking, I decided the smartest thing I can do is put every single detail in front of people who have been where I am and ask for your unfiltered takes. Here is the complete picture: Current role – Company A (ESG Modelling / Climate Tech space) 51L base 10–11L annual bonus 4–5L RSUs → total ~65–67L CTC right now I have been here for X years (you can fill) No formal promotion yet, but my work is deeply respected. Seniors and peers openly acknowledge my contributions, trust my technical judgement, and treat me as a peer even without the title. Extremely strong engineering culture — high code quality standards, deep technical ownership, rigorous reviews, real system thinking. This place is genuinely making me a much better engineer every single quarter. The people are “morally good” — supportive, zero politics I’ve seen, mentors who actually care. Leaving them feels like leaving family. Work-life is stable, predictable, and family-friendly. Downside: Clear signal that team-lead / people leadership is 2–3+ years away at best. Downside 2: The ESG / sustainability modelling business is facing real headwinds in the next 1–2 years (regulatory fatigue, funding slowdowns, possible revenue pressure). Salary growth to match the new offer would take minimum 2–3 years even in best case. The new offer – Company B (AI/ML focused product company) VP title 80L base + performance bonus (no cap mentioned — could easily push 100L+ in a good year) Explicit responsibility to build and lead a team from day one Pure AI/ML role in a high-growth area (computer vision / LLM applications / whatever the exact domain — you can specify) This is being positioned as a “once-in-a-career” jump — both financially and in terms of future employability. My internal conflict (every single layer): What I lose if I leave A: The respect and visibility I have earned Deep technical mentorship and growth environment Zero politics, morally aligned seniors I genuinely like and respect Comfort zone + family stability The fear that I will regret burning a bridge with people who have been good to me What I gain if I join B: Immediate 20–25L+ jump in cash compensation (life-changing for family goals) Actual people leadership experience right now, not in 3 years Skills in the hottest domain of the next decade (AI/ML talent shortage is real — 1.4M+ gap in India) The “what if I never took the shot” regret avoided I know, no matter what I choose, I will regret the road not taken. If I stay → I will always wonder “what if that was truly my lifetime opportunity?” If I leave → I will miss the culture, the people, and the deep engineering growth I was getting. I have done the math, the market research, the values exercise… and I’m still stuck. So I’m turning to you. If you were in my exact shoes — same salary numbers, same respect in current role, same family considerations, same industry realities in 2026 — what would YOU do? Stay in A and try to force a counter-offer / internal growth? Take the leap to B and bet on myself in the new environment? Something else I’m missing? Be brutally honest. Tell me the hard truths. Share your own similar stories (I’ve read hundreds of regret posts — I don’t want to become one). PS: i have used llms to make this writeup as what i had written was way too long and unstructured.

ESG : PQE 3.5 Years

Hi! I am a esg professional, dealing with GRI framework. Please let me know of any job opportunities!

Temm what would you choose?

I’m facing one of the toughest career decisions of my life and I genuinely need your collective wisdom. I’ve never posted something this personal before, but after weeks of overthinking, I decided the smartest thing I can do is put every single detail in front of people who have been where I am and ask for your unfiltered takes. Here is the complete picture: Current role – Company A (ESG Modelling / Climate Tech space) 51L base 10–11L annual bonus 4–5L RSUs → total ~65–67L CTC right now I have been here for X years (you can fill) No formal promotion yet, but my work is deeply respected. Seniors and peers openly acknowledge my contributions, trust my technical judgement, and treat me as a peer even without the title. Extremely strong engineering culture — high code quality standards, deep technical ownership, rigorous reviews, real system thinking. This place is genuinely making me a much better engineer every single quarter. The people are “morally good” — supportive, zero politics I’ve seen, mentors who actually care. Leaving them feels like leaving family. Work-life is stable, predictable, and family-friendly. Downside: Clear signal that team-lead / people leadership is 2–3+ years away at best. Downside 2: The ESG / sustainability modelling business is facing real headwinds in the next 1–2 years (regulatory fatigue, funding slowdowns, possible revenue pressure). Salary growth to match the new offer would take minimum 2–3 years even in best case. The new offer – Company B (AI/ML focused product company) VP title 80L base + performance bonus (no cap mentioned — could easily push 100L+ in a good year) Explicit responsibility to build and lead a team from day one Pure AI/ML role in a high-growth area (computer vision / LLM applications / whatever the exact domain — you can specify) This is being positioned as a “once-in-a-career” jump — both financially and in terms of future employability. My internal conflict (every single layer): What I lose if I leave A: The respect and visibility I have earned Deep technical mentorship and growth environment Zero politics, morally aligned seniors I genuinely like and respect Comfort zone + family stability The fear that I will regret burning a bridge with people who have been good to me What I gain if I join B: Immediate 20–25L+ jump in cash compensation (life-changing for family goals) Actual people leadership experience right now, not in 3 years Skills in the hottest domain of the next decade (AI/ML talent shortage is real — 1.4M+ gap in India) The “what if I never took the shot” regret avoided I know, no matter what I choose, I will regret the road not taken. If I stay → I will always wonder “what if that was truly my lifetime opportunity?” If I leave → I will miss the culture, the people, and the deep engineering growth I was getting. I have done the math, the market research, the values exercise… and I’m still stuck. So I’m turning to you. If you were in my exact shoes — same salary numbers, same respect in current role, same family considerations, same industry realities in 2026 — what would YOU do? Stay in A and try to force a counter-offer / internal growth? Take the leap to B and bet on myself in the new environment? Something else I’m missing? Be brutally honest. Tell me the hard truths. Share your own similar stories (I’ve read hundreds of regret posts — I don’t want to become one).