Plenty of tech companies do this, I think: offering both an engineering and a management path. Yahoo (where I worked) was one (offering a "management" and "arch

Plenty of tech companies do this, I think: offering both an engineering and a management path. Yahoo (where I worked) was one (offering a "management" and "architect" path), several places I've interviewed and the place where I accepted are the same way. I heard Google and Microsoft are similar as well. In addition there are tracks/careers for managing technologies as opposed to managing people (project/program/product management). It's would be a waste to put a talented hacker into a management position - and likewise there are people who are excellent managers despite not being the world's strongest hackers.