[pc86]

Honestly I think places constrain those upper echelon titles so much because there really isn't that much work to be done at that level, and the vast majority of people just aren't that good at it.

> Companies don't seem to be motivated to provide actual, achievable growth paths that are transferrable from company to company.

The cynic in me says why would they if they're getting what they need without it? But taking a step back, most companies don't have any work worthy of someone who actually deserves a Principal or Fellow title. Even Staff doesn't mean much when you work at a logistics company with 10 developers - you're just a glorified manager at that point.