That's an "if" that applies to so few companies it's almost not worth considering. Most software written today isn't breaking new ground, and I think the sooner we communicate that to the next generation (and the companies trying to hire)the sooner we can fix a lot of the problems in pipeline.
Exactly this. Unfortunately most developers I've met, look at their jobs as little more than churning out code to meet a spec that was handed down to them.
Now if you're an early stage startup, you're putting together a team, then yes, of course you absolutely need someone who lives and breathes dev and loves every minute of it - but it's not as much about the quality of the code as it is about how that person will positively impact the overall company culture.
But majority of dev jobs ... little more than 9-5 code churning.
I guess we should take a time and make a clearer terminology. The developer is the one who develops things. The coder/programmer is the one who writes code. There was a time when both terms were synonyms, but nowdays it is not true.