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Building software is not just about coding skills; it’s about creativity, too. And guess what? Developers do their best stuff when they aren’t interrupted. Seriously, getting rid of those pesky distractions makes a bigger difference than you’d think—it helps engineers a whole lot more than tweaking their tools ever could.
Here’s something to think about: a super-focused group of engineers can send a tech company’s productivity through the roof, all while bringing down costs. When every engineer is knocking it out of the park consistently, a small team can do what would normally take a small army.
The money that tech companies spend on their engineering teams is huge. That makes their productivity super important, not just for keeping costs down, but also for how fast they can churn out new products and innovations. It’s pretty much a key business thing to watch.
In the tech world, there are tons of things that can get in the way, like endless meetings, those “just checking in” messages on Slack, or not being totally clear on what the developers are supposed to be making. These interruptions don’t look like much on their own, but add them up, and you’ve got a big old mess.
So, here’s the game plan for making your developers as productive as can be:
First, set the stage for them to get “in the zone.” When developers sit down to code, they’re not just typing; they’re fitting pieces together in their minds, like a giant puzzle. Now, imagine you’re deep in thought, and someone pings you for something trivial. Boom—all that mental setup just collapses. It’s like someone’s waking you up every hour when you’re trying to get some good sleep.
My business partner and I keep things running smoothly with a culture that’s all about writing stuff down and not so much about having meetings. Fewer meetings equal more uninterrupted coding time. And when we do meet, it’s for a good reason, like keeping everyone on the same page or sharing important info. But we try to avoid them by having super detailed documentation about everything—how we test, how we use tools, you name it. This lets developers find what they need without having to stop their flow just to ask a question.
Next up: hiring awesome product managers. Here’s the thing: developers shouldn’t be wasting time figuring out what they need to build. That’s splitting their focus between planning and coding—two very different beasts. Bringing in brilliant product managers and design engineers means developers can trust that someone else is navigating, so they can just focus on coding.
And don’t forget about making sure developers are happy. It’s not just about feeling good; happy developers get more done. And they stick around longer, too. Keeping them happy means clearing the road so they can spend their time doing what they love: building stuff. Another way we keep the peace is by rotating support duties. This way, only one person deals with the urgent problems each week, letting everyone else dive deep into their projects without bracing for interruptions.
Believe it or not, even the shiniest tools aren’t as impactful as a team that’s just crushing it at their work. An environment that’s not up to snuff can really hold you back, slow down your product development, and hurt your competitiveness.
When it all comes down to it, the key to ramping up developer productivity is cutting out those distractions wherever you can. Give engineers the time, support, deets, and tools they need to find their flow, and they’ll be more effective than you could imagine. And if there’s a tool out there that can help—even better.
Kapil Kale, the guy who co-founded Tremendous, knows what he’s talking about when it comes to getting the most out of your developers.
And hey, if you’re into data and innovation, you should totally check out DataDecisionMakers. It’s a place where data pros share their insights and breakthroughs, and you can join in too. They’ve got all the latest on the future of data tech, best practices, and groundbreaking ideas. Maybe think about dropping an article there yourself!