Roles · AR/VR Developer · Lead

What a Lead } should know

34 core skills, 51 in total. Expectations per skill, and what changes at the next level.

This page lists what a Lead } is expected to know and do, skill by skill. Core skills are the ones a manager and peers assess in a review cycle; the rest count only in self-assessment. Main areas: Programming Fundamentals, Testing & QA, Version Control & Collaboration.

34core skills
17additional skills
6skill areas
100%at Advanced or Expert
Assess myself as Lead Full role matrix

Core skills for a Lead

Grouped by area. The label on the right is the expected depth: Awareness, Working, Advanced or Expert.

Programming Fundamentals · 8

Reviews team's algorithmic solutions. Defines efficiency standards for XR systems. Mentors on algorithmic thinking.

Defines asynchronous code standards for the XR project. Establishes approaches to streaming and dynamic loading.

Defines the code quality strategy for the XR team. Conducts architectural code reviews. Establishes coding guidelines.

Defines data structure usage standards for the XR project. Reviews architectural decisions on data structures.

Builds a pattern catalog for XR development within the team. Reviews pattern application. Trains the team on architectural approaches.

Defines the memory budget for the XR project. Establishes memory management standards. Implements automated memory profiling in CI.

Defines the threading strategy for the XR project. Establishes multithreaded code standards. Reviews threading solutions.

Defines architectural approaches for XR projects. Conducts architecture reviews for SOLID compliance. Mentors on design.

Testing & QA · 1

Unit Testing Expert

Builds a testing culture within the XR team. Defines coverage targets. Implements automated testing in CI for XR projects.

Version Control & Collaboration · 2

Code Review Expert

Defines the code review process for the XR team. Conducts architectural reviews. Establishes review guidelines.

Git Advanced Expert

Defines the Git strategy for the XR project. Configures Git hooks and CI integration. Establishes branching and merging policies.

Game Development · 8

Defines the animation strategy for the XR product. Coordinates work between animators and programmers. Establishes the animation pipeline for VR avatars.

Defines the audio strategy for the VR/AR product. Coordinates work between sound designers and programmers. Establishes audio quality standards for XR.

Builds a performance culture within the team. Defines performance budgets for all platforms. Implements a CI pipeline for performance regression testing. Coordinates optimization with 3D artists.

Game Physics Expert

Defines the physics engine strategy for the XR project. Establishes performance budgets for physics computations. Coordinates development of physical interactions.

Defines the rendering strategy for the XR product. Establishes the rendering budget (GPU time, draw calls, textures). Coordinates work between graphics programmers and artists.

Defines the UX strategy for the XR product. Coordinates UX research and design. Builds an XR design system for the team. Conducts UX reviews of XR features.

Unity Engine Expert

Defines Unity project architecture and standards. Establishes CI/CD processes for Unity builds. Coordinates work with 3D artists and designers. Plans Unity version migrations.

Defines the technical strategy for using UE5 in VR/AR projects. Establishes coding and architecture standards. Coordinates with Epic Games when necessary.

XR: AR/VR/MR · 12

Defines 3D pipeline standards for the team. Coordinates work between 3D artists and programmers. Establishes asset budget guidelines. Implements automated asset quality checks.

Defines mathematical approaches for XR products. Mentors the team on 3D math. Conducts reviews of mathematical algorithms. Builds a library of reusable math utilities.

Defines visionOS development strategy. Coordinates migration of XR applications to visionOS. Establishes development and testing processes for Apple Vision Pro. Engages with Apple Developer Relations.

Builds an AR content production pipeline for the team. Coordinates work between 3D artists and developers. Defines AR asset quality standards. Creates a library of reusable AR components.

Defines the AR platform strategy for the product. Architects the AR system for multi-device support. Coordinates AR feature development between iOS and Android teams. Establishes best practices for AR tracking and anchors.

Designs the tracking strategy for AR products. Coordinates development of custom tracking solutions. Defines tracking requirements for various use cases. Establishes AR tracking quality metrics.

Defines the Meta Quest platform development strategy. Coordinates application optimization and certification. Establishes the release process for Meta Quest Store. Engages with Meta Developer Relations.

Defines the OpenXR adoption strategy for products. Coordinates cross-platform XR development based on OpenXR. Establishes standards for using OpenXR extensions. Participates in OpenXR working groups.

Defines the spatial computing strategy for products. Coordinates development of spatial features. Establishes spatial mapping quality metrics. Plans the architecture for multi-user spatial experiences.

Defines the strategy for supporting various VR controllers and input devices. Establishes controller mapping standards for the team. Coordinates input system development. Evaluates new input devices.

Establishes VR interaction standards for the product. Coordinates VR UX design with development. Conducts usability testing of VR interfaces. Defines accessibility standards for VR.

Defines locomotion standards for the VR product. Coordinates research on comfort settings. Establishes VR user comfort metrics. Conducts A/B testing of different locomotion approaches.

Performance Engineering · 3

CPU Profiling Expert

Develops CPU performance strategy for the XR project. Implements automated CPU profiling. Defines CPU budgets for various systems.

Defines the latency SLA for the XR product. Establishes the latency optimization strategy. Implements latency monitoring.

Develops a memory profiling strategy for the XR project. Implements automated memory regression testing. Defines memory budgets.

Additional skills

Not assessed by the team, but part of the self-assessment and the development plan.

AWSDockerGitHub Actions / GitLab CIIntegration TestingKubernetes CoreNetwork FundamentalsOWASP & Application SecurityPostgreSQLPrometheus & GrafanaPrompt Engineering for CodeRedisREST API DesignSecure Coding PracticesStructured LoggingSystem Design FundamentalsChatGPT / ClaudeGitHub Copilot

What changes at Principal

2 skills get a higher expectation or become core when moving from Lead to Principal. The biggest jumps first.

See the Principal page →
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} in the open competency matrix: 51 skills across 5 levels. The matrix is free for individuals and stays free.