Here's how you can excel as an executive in Database Engineering.

Ensure you have strong base database principles, ACID, CAP theorem, Paxos, B-Trees and RAFT. Understanding the operating system concepts and cloud gives an edge regarding performance troubleshooting and solutions. A stronger foundation will ensure faster growth in one's career as a database engineer.

The role of executive in my experience has more to do with leading a team or a whole data engineering department, so it is more a managerial role, so I would add top skills like managing projects and people, solving problems, making decisions, setting future data governance roadmaps, reviewing budget and understanding the business needs interacting with other managers. Anyone else has had similar experience?

When leading database engineers. Try to ensure there is diversity in the team. Delegate tasks based on their expertise and guide them closely to complete the tasks. This can boost their confidence and trust in their leader. Encourage the team to share areas of improvement in the team, People will have better ideas, and implement them. This can make them feel more valued. Internal training sessions on various database technologies, tools and related topics will ensure that team knowledge is at its peak. Always give out gratitude to the team members.

Focus on creating a diverse team with a range of skills and experiences. Promote a culture of continuous improvement and learning within the team. Encourage certifications, training programs, and attendance at industry conferences.

Foster an environment where innovation is encouraged. This can involve implementing new technologies, such as AI and machine learning for predictive analytics, or adopting new database paradigms like NoSQL for specific use cases. Develop a proactive approach to identify potential issues before they become critical problems. This includes regular audits, performance monitoring, and risk assessments.

Ensure robust data security measures are in place to protect against breaches and data loss. Implement encryption, access controls, and regular security audits. Stay abreast of regulatory requirements and ensure that database systems comply with relevant laws and regulations, such as GDPR, HIPAA, and others.

Regularly review and optimize database performance. Implement best practices for indexing, query optimization, and storage management. Use automation tools for routine tasks like backups, monitoring, and updates to reduce manual intervention and increase efficiency.

Database Capacity Planning - figure out how much resources like memory, cpu, storage etc will be needed overtime to meet the expected database growth and application needs. This will help database engineers to maintain consistent performance and be more proactive.

Develop and maintain comprehensive disaster recovery and backup plans. Ensure these plans are tested regularly and updated as needed. Establish and manage Service Level Agreements (SLAs) for database performance and availability. Monitor performance metrics and ensure that the team meets or exceeds these targets.