Amy Wu — Engineering Leadership Coaching for a Resilient Career

Meet Amy

I've been where you are.

I'm an advisor, coach, and builder who helps tech leaders build resilient careers: confident decisions now, and clarity on the long term.

I spent over a decade leading engineering at LinkedIn and Instacart — IC to Engineering Director, five promotions within 10 years. That climb taught me what actually moves the needle at each level — and what doesn't, even when it feels like it should.

Today I support tech leaders building a resilient career and life in the AI era — using the MOAT framework I designed and live.

M (Make) · O (Outlook) · A (Audience) · T (Tribe)

The work: a senior leader's directness with deep listening, creating space to see what's been avoided and the courage to act.

See the MOAT framework →

Why work with Amy

Hands-on practitioner, senior-leader mindset

I've built and run engineering organizations

A decade at LinkedIn and Instacart: built teams from scratch five times, led 50+ engineers, sat in 50+ calibrations and 100+ bar-raiser interviews.

I'm building inside a startup now

I left a director role to build AI-native products hands-on. The questions you're weighing, I'm living.

Clients through real moves

New companies, new managers, acquisitions, job searches. Clients have landed roles at OpenAI and Roblox.

In Their Words

Working with Amy has been transformative for both my career and my life. She supported me through major transitions — from IC to Tech Lead Manager to Senior Engineering Manager — helping me grow into a more confident, grounded, and effective leader. Her questions had a way of pulling me up out of the day-to-day and surfacing the patterns and second-order effects I hadn't been seeing — which is how I built a system thinker's mindset for managing teams and a leadership style grounded in who I actually was rather than borrowed from someone else's playbook.

Christina Xu Senior Engineering Manager, Instacart

What sets Amy apart is how tailored her coaching is — she doesn't offer generic advice, but highly relevant, context-rich guidance specific to my situation. Her questions helped me see what leadership actually looks like at my next level on both the IC and management tracks — and surfaced what I was genuinely looking for instead of just chasing a title. That clarity reshaped how I evaluated opportunities — I started pursuing roles that fit what I actually wanted, not just the next legible step.

Chang Xu Senior Principal Engineer/Manager, Roblox

Amy helped me build the skills to turn opportunities into real business impact — influencing without authority, earning cross-functional buy-in, and staying calm and patient through ambiguity. Amy didn't hand me answers — she asked the questions that helped me understand why my proposals weren't landing the way I expected, and how to navigate complex organizational dynamics more strategically. The muscles Amy helped me build played a key role in my promotion to Staff Engineer and continue to shape how I show up today.

Arthur Li Staff Software Engineer, Slack

Amy is a coach who genuinely cares, and every conversation with her brings clarity. She has a way of helping me recognize where I've been stuck — what I've been avoiding, second-guessing, or hesitant to admit I truly want. She creates a space where I feel seen without judgment, which has made it easier to face challenges I might have otherwise talked myself out of. Over time, that's led to a meaningful shift in how boldly I pursue what matters to me.

Shengchen Lin Finance Leader

The clarity and confidence I gained from her coaching continue to shape how I approach work, leadership, and life. Her approach consistently pushed me to stretch beyond my comfort zone while building real confidence along the way. What truly sets her apart is her ability to see potential in people and help them unlock it — one of the reasons I cofounded Leland.

Jiashuo Wang CoFounder, Leland

Working with Amy has been truly transformative. She brings exceptional clarity to complex situations and helps you see both the immediate path forward and the leader you're capable of becoming. Her coaching is deeply insightful, practical, and grounded in real leadership experience. She challenges you in the right ways while building lasting confidence and impact.

Benjamin Peyrot Staff Software Engineer, Instacart

Build a resilient career in the AI era.

I've been where you are.

Hands-on practitioner, senior-leader mindset

I've built and run engineering organizations

I'm building inside a startup now

Clients through real moves

Essays on leading in the AI era.