Hope I'm not being too much of an internet psychoanalyst here, but...

Couldn't agree more.

I think there's this perception from legacy engineering companies that a career track is a single line transitioning from IC to management, with some overlap defined by either pay grade or prestige (or both) between the seniors from IC and the juniors from management. This might be the source of OP's feelings of frustration.

I just crested the 10-year mark on my career and one of the things I try to sniff out in interviews is whether there's a genuinely workable long-term IC track which doesn't just fold into management, cause seniority in management in my experience is directly proportional to the number of hours you spend in meetings every week, and that's reaaally not for me.

@OP: perhaps you could go into more detail about why you feel unhappy being an IC to younger managers? I get that there's the accountability structure aspect of it, but it sounds like you're frustrated because they're younger despite them being in an orthogonal career track. Are the managers you dislike incompetent?

Even if there is an IC track, how viable is it. while management competition is stiff, there still tends to be more opportunities up top than engineers. Sure I could be CTO, but below the CTO there are not many high level engineers before you get to the standard level. There are a lot more opportunities to move up in management. Of course CTO is itself a management job that gives you a little time to look at something technical, and most of the high level technical positions under that are likewise more people jobs than technical.

This might help people sleep at night, but it's incorrect. Managers have more pay, more direct reports and more responsibility. It's the definition of a promotion.

There are upper technical people who don't have direct reports, but have more pay and responsibility. However there are a lot more in management than those positions in most companies.

I am an IC and I outlevel my manager and probably make more than my skip who is at the same level (I have some significant extra performance bonus equity grants), so no.

Obviously managers have more direct reports, the definition of an IC is that they have zero direct reports, besides maybe a temporary intern.

At any competent tech company, moving to management results in no immediate change to compensation. It is a transition, not a promotion.

At a seed-stage startup I was paid more than the CEO, and technical founder. High-value IC's absolutely can be paid more. I had plenty of responsibility, but it was in the systems not people.

Just saw your comment after I added mine. There is too much gaslighting about management and what the role is.

Not true in tech companies , eng usually has an equivalent career ladder up to VP level with same pay bands

So much gaslighting. It's a new role with more responsibility, more power and a higher salary or bonus. The definition of a promotion.