May I suggest that you talk to some of the peers that you mentioned that have moved on to other positions. Ask them how the "strange leaps" came to pass. You c

May I suggest that you talk to some of the peers that you mentioned that have moved on to other positions. Ask them how the "strange leaps" came to pass. You could also ask these peers how their current positions differ from that of a Senior Engineer. What is better, what is worse, what did they find surprising, etc. Finally, ask the ones you really trust for an honest assessment of your strengths and weaknesses. In my experience, many Senior Engineers have a hard time moving up to larger (in scope) problems or projects because it requires relinquishing ownership and control of subsystems (silos to use your term) to other engineers, other teams, and other companies. To do this well requires political skills many Senior Engineers lack.