If Fred was spending his days fingerpainting on the walls, you may have a point. I don't like the idea of being a technical leader and frowning upon people doin

If Fred was spending his days fingerpainting on the walls, you may have a point. I don't like the idea of being a technical leader and frowning upon people doing productive, deep, technical work because it doesn't check a dozen boxes of being on the approved list of things to be working on. The art of management is to take that creative energy, skill, and passion and direct it towards generating value for the organization. Top tier teams happen in part because management flips this bit from zero to one for each team member, through leadership, coaching, decision making, and providing 'air cover.' You go to war with the army you have, and the best leaders turn people who would fail under average leaders into superstars. If this is the person's only flaw, and they're otherwise a great team member, good person, and capable engineer, if they are ultimately fired, that is management's fault, not Fred's.