This is very true, but it's also important to remember that the drift might not indicate that anyone has lost their way. The needs at a company of twelve people

This is very true, but it's also important to remember that the drift might not indicate that anyone has lost their way. The needs at a company of twelve people are different than the needs at a company of a hundred, a thousand, ten thousand. At the disruptor vs. the incumbent. Pre-profit vs. post-profit. I know people who have been first developer or first COO/CMO/VPE at multiple companies, leaving each without any rancor whatsoever when those companies outgrew their own ideal skillset and working style. Sometimes people and companies naturally grow apart. While the OP's point that it's not always your fault is a good one, the conclusion (that if it's not your fault it must be the company's) does not follow. Sometimes it's not a fault. It's just a thing that happened.