Intro
Last week, in my interview with one of our mentors & favorite podcast guest Sebastien, VP of Technology at Tonies, we talked about motivating dev teams. Our conversation started with how Seb used to feel most of the time working at different companies during his engineering career and the candid conversation went on giving me some great actionable advice on crafting the right developer experience for successful tech teams.
Here it goes-
Developers feeling unaligned, burned out, or demotivated - isn’t this what we have felt as an engineering leader in most of our tech catchup calls?
While we daily encounter these symptoms that negatively impact dev productivity, have we stopped for a while to think about the underlying root causes & what could be the real ‘cure’? This is what I will try to share today - some core reasons behind these issues and actionable strategies to overcome them, based on my personal experiences.
What are the most common symptoms and their root causes?
Lack of Alignment with Company Vision
Symptom: Developers feel disconnected from the overall goals of the company.
Root Cause: Inadequate communication of the company’s vision and how their work contributes to it.
Burnout
Symptom: Developers exhibit signs of exhaustion, decreased productivity, and lack of enthusiasm.
Root Cause: Excessive workload, unrealistic deadlines, and lack of work-life balance.
General Demotivation
Symptom: Developers show a lack of interest in their tasks and the overall project.
Root Cause: Monotonous work, lack of recognition, and limited growth opportunities.
What’s the magic cure?
Clear Communication of the Vision
Regularly communicate the company’s vision and strategic goals through meetings, newsletters, and informal chats. Use storytelling to make the vision relatable and show concrete examples of how their work contributes to achieving these goals.
What did we do? : Early in our startup journey, I noticed a disconnect between the company’s strategic goals and the day-to-day tasks of our developers. We started holding monthly all-hands meetings where I shared the big picture, our progress, and how each team’s work was crucial to our success.
Promoting a Healthy Work-Life Balance
Implement flexible working hours and promote taking breaks and vacations. Ensure realistic deadlines and manage workloads effectively to prevent burnout.
What did we do? : During a particularly intense project phase, I saw the toll it took on my team’s health and morale. We introduced three things - 1 day per week as ‘No meetings day’, 1 day per month as ‘No dev day’ (only reviews) and encouraged taking time off to recharge.
Providing Growth Opportunities
Offer opportunities for skill development through training, conferences, and workshops. Create a clear career path and provide chances for developers to take on new roles and responsibilities.
What did we do? : One of our senior developers felt stuck in his role. We introduced a buddy program and asked her to shadow a tech lead in their weekly team calls to understand their role & leadership style. This gave her a new perspective & encouraged her to lead a new project, which reignited her enthusiasm.
Fostering a Collaborative Culture
Promote a culture of collaboration through team-building activities, pair programming, and regular cross-functional meetings. Encourage open communication and knowledge sharing.
What did we do? : Initially, our teams worked in silos, leading to a lack of collaboration and innovation. We reorganized them into cross-functional ‘Pods’ having a mix of tech + product with each aligned to different business units, helping them understand each others’ needs & work accordingly.
Recognizing and Rewarding Contributions
Regularly recognize and reward contributions, both big and small. Implement a system for peer-to-peer recognition and celebrate team achievements to boost morale.
What did we do? : I realised we weren’t adequately recognizing our developers’ hard work. We started using a peer recognition platform ‘HuddleUp’ that offers a fun gamified way to appreciate each others’ daily work in the form of emojis across Slack channels & thus spreading positivity.
Ensuring Meaningful Work
Ensure that developers are engaged in meaningful work by aligning their tasks with their interests and strengths. Rotate projects to provide variety and keep the work interesting.
What did we do? : Every month we follow a practice of swapping developers to work on tech debt & pending bugs/issues. This allows everyone to work on a mix of things and saves any one dev doing all the boring stuff.
And lastly, measure progress!
Keep track of what all initiatives are resonating well with the devs and which areas need more improvement. I highly recommend trying out a scientific approach here as well. We use a developer experience measurement tool ‘Typo’ that helps us to objectively identify the behavioural areas that our devs are struggling with & how effectively we have been able to resolve them, thus directly impacting the motivation levels.
Conclusion
Building a motivated development team is an ongoing journey that requires continuous effort and adaptation. By understanding the core reasons behind misalignment, burnout, and demotivation, and implementing these strategies, you can create a more engaged and productive team.
Remember, the key lies in communication, recognition, and providing opportunities for growth and development. As leaders, it’s our responsibility to create an environment where developers feel valued, understood, and motivated to contribute their best work.
Feel free to share your own experiences and strategies in the comments below. Together, we can build stronger, more motivated engineering teams that drive our startups to success.
Ciao!
Credits 🙏
Guests- Cheers to our super supportive community member Sebastien
Sponsors- Thanks to our sponsors Typo AI - Ship reliable software faster
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