Employee burnout is common in the tech industry, especially for developers. In fact, 83% of software developers feel burnt out from their work and of those, nearly half of them feel overworked. Often, this is because the processes currently in place at their companies are not effective and too much time is spent doing mundane work.
Resolving coding errors is a necessary part of software development, but this isn’t always an easy chore. Given the complexity of code today, developers do tend to spend a large percentage of their bandwidth on maintenance issues, refactoring, debugging or just modifying code that they never wrote in the first place. That said, 44% of developers stated that fixing software defects and problems is their biggest frustration.
Every developer wants to create good code, but repetitively dealing with issues that aren’t part of the code they write steals away time from doing interesting work. More than a third of developers claim that they would prefer spending more time with their families, participating in more physical activity and even getting a full night’s sleep than spending the majority of their time fixing code. Developers also stated that they could use the time at work to focus on new features and capabilities.
By implementing clean code best practices across the organization, development teams can create an environment that prioritizes new and interesting projects while organically addressing errors. Clean code practices help keep developers engaged and interested.
What is Clean Code?
Every organization relies heavily on software and the source code that powers it to run successfully. Companies are aware that the source, or DNA, of their software is what counts as its most important asset. The behavior and functionality are both governed by the source code and if it’s not kept in good condition, the source code can turn from an asset into a liability.
Clean code refers to a codebase that has reached a flawless and problem-free state. It is code that is maintainable, reliable, secure, readable and embodies other such attributes of code. While developers write clean code for their new projects from the beginning, they simultaneously address existing issues through set quality standards. The overall workload of security and development teams also is greatly reduced when clean coding practices are considered and integrated into the development workflow.
With this method, fewer issues reach the final stage of inspections. It also avoids pricey post-production rework or drawn-out feedback processes. The outcome is a simplified and effective method for managing the state of your code.
How Clean Code Helps Developers
By giving your developers access to the power of clean code practices, organizations can make sure that their development teams are working on projects that are impactful and exciting rather than dealing with mundane repetitive work. This means that they have more time to research, put new ideas into action, and also be part of new initiatives that have a direct impact on their organization’s success.
When using the clean-as-you-code approach, you create a precedent that, moving forward, new code that is added or updated won’t result in new problems. As new updates are made to old code, the overall quality of that code progressively improves. This is a much more manageable process and a huge step toward improving the overall quality of code.
Additionally, the clean-as-you-code approach empowers developers to take charge of the quality of the code they deliver. The feedback loop to detect and fix issues is naturally shortened with the proper tooling they can use in their current DevOps workflow. And contextualized education helps them quickly understand the root cause and get guidance to fix them. When their everyday routines automatically incorporate this technique, the possibility of recurring or exposed weaknesses is greatly reduced. In the long run, this helps save development time and effort, making development so much more enjoyable.
There are many things that are a necesssary part of a developer’s everyday responsibilities. Making it simple and efficient is a win-win for everyone. No matter the state of your codebase, the maturity of your development team, or the size of your organization, clean code best practices are easy to embrace and will make your developers happier and more satisfied at work.