Being a tech generalist is a great background for a manager. But there are some caveats. Firstly, besides understanding the work, a manager also has to be able

Being a tech generalist is a great background for a manager. But there are some caveats. Firstly, besides understanding the work, a manager also has to be able to actually manage subordinates. This is orthogonal to technical ability. Secondly, internal promotion of a generalist carries risk of that generalist being too opinionated based on his own work. They are much more likely to be a conservative force. This might be an unnecessary barrier to good changes.