Or perhaps his people skills were just simply a strong point with him.
People, who tend to make great engineers tend to not do well in management because dealing with people is a different skill set than dealing with mechanics or formulas.
I wouldn’t go that far either... More experience... I know a lot of really good managers who started out as engineers. I also now some that are worthless. It’s a case by case basis kind of thing...
Herman’s degrees and in math and computer science. I’ve worked with many in those fields and engineering. Many I wouldn’t trust to change the tire on my car, let alone be the President.
When I see big hay being made out of degrees etc., I view it with a bit of skepticism.
Remember - Jimmy Carter was a nuclear engineer.