> Say you've built a database that underlies reporting infrastructure that underlies all decision-making in the entire company. Bringing in somebody else to loo

> Say you've built a database that underlies reporting infrastructure that underlies all decision-making in the entire company. Bringing in somebody else to look after the database is a risk that a company usually won't want to take. Ramping up somebody else to learn about the system is a cost they won't want to incur. Congratulations: You're stuck looking after that database for the rest of your time at that organization. That's the reward you get for having done a good job at building that database. FWIW my experience at top tech company is very different. If an engineer did this and was unable to communicate, cross-train, and scale themselves beyond their direct ability to maintain, they would never make it to principal -- or any other coveted technical career path promotion.