The part you're leaving out, is that once confronted with the fact that his old easy tricks don't apply, the well-seasoned fellow will draw on his years of expe

The part you're leaving out, is that once confronted with the fact that his old easy tricks don't apply, the well-seasoned fellow will draw on his years of experience to provide new tricks to save the day. I think your portrayal of well-seasoned engineers as the derogatory 'greybeard' with a 'bag of tricks' and a hero complex -- glosses over the fact that many of these men and women have real hands-on experience with a multitude of technologies spanning decades, and in my mind there's real value / leadership qualities associated with individuals companies can rely on to just "get things done" in a pinch.