I've been a software developer for eight (8) years now and while my programming skills are decent I think I've developed a much better sense of how teams function (or don't) and processes that help or harm the operations of a team.

All of that to say, the management track seems like the entry-level job paradox. You need management experience to get into the role so there's no way to get that original experience. I'm also coming at this from the perspective of someone who is currently under a manager who simply got the role due to seniority and only plays the manager role when absolutely necessary and I believe that my "team" has a ton of untapped potential because of the lack of true leadership.