Joe Procopio I agree with you that the first 10 aren't always the top 10 and that’s fine- chances are you won’t have 10 leadership positions open simultaneously anyway. But the early data scientist, while he may never become head of data operations, should be leading or at least on the leadership team in the data science department. If a company isn’t willing to promote your employees as the organization grows it is bad for both the employee and the company to keep them engaged. Chances are they will be valued more or “find themselves flourishing” in a different environment.