I'd compare it to sports, there's a bit of skill overlap between playing ability and coaching but not much. The majority of great coaches were fairly average pl

I'd compare it to sports, there's a bit of skill overlap between playing ability and coaching but not much. The majority of great coaches were fairly average players, the majority of great players fail as coaches. Same for being an engineer manager and individual contributor, tons of great programmers are horrible managers and vice versa The key to a successful business is aligning incentives, make it so each skillset is rewarded properly for their contribution. Obviously a tough task. Most fail and great engineers have to become managers to make more money and it hurts both parties