Do position titles matter?  Does going from a role that has direct reports to an individual contributor role connote something negative?  My answer is NO.  I've had several discussions with my peers as of late and this subject is always interesting.  Everyone has their thoughts and goals regarding what they WANT to do and/or THINK they should do in their career.  My advice:  Follow your heart, your gut or whatever the body part is that drives your passion.  Don't be over concerned about a title change from Director to Manager or Leader or SME.  Don't fret about having people reporting to you and transitioning to a high-level, individual contributor role.  Pay attention to the CONTENT of the role you take on - the impact you'll have - the contributions you'll make - and doing something you enjoy.  Believe me, the Hiring Manager for the next role you take on is not (or should not be) paying attention to titles - they differ exponentially in each company.  They will pay attention to the responsibilities you hold/held and the impact you've made (or they should be).  I mean, if you're part of a team that is strategically managing a sourcing initiative and then you take on a role as a tactical buyer of widgets for a plant in Podunk USA, a red flag may rise - and can be explained if you've been involved in a major layoff, re-organization, etc.  But if you are moving from a Director of Sourcing role (for example) in which you have HR responsibility for 10 people to a Strategic Sourcing Manager (again, for example) for a company going through major transformation and you have responsibility for developing and managing global strategic initiatives that create new programs and cost savings (etc, etc), this is NOT a negative in the career path!  The truth is in the rubber meeting the road, not the ink on the paper.