That's an interesting perspective but I suspect it fits reality better if the P and V levels are in moonshot startup territory. If you have the skills and knowl

That's an interesting perspective but I suspect it fits reality better if the P and V levels are in moonshot startup territory. If you have the skills and knowledge to be successful at those levels, your product/vision is something good, but you're operating in a smaller market without huge amounts of investment funding, you might still make more money and sometimes exert more influence being at level K but working with clients who are already established in larger markets and in need of wiser and more knowledgeable input to grow further. Think of a rapid growth scale-up where most of the technical staff are relatively inexperienced or a multinational spinning up a new division that wants to build a solid foundation for its next big thing. The right technical advice and strategic leadership can be worth a fortune in that kind of environment.