The longer I’ve worked here, the more obvious a trend has emerged. It has begun to concern me, and I’m working to take steps to combat it this year.
When a developer starts out, the spend nearly 95% of their time writing code. This goes merrily along (often for years), until the ratio begins to move. The ratio is the amount of time that is spent writing new code, versus maintaining existing code. As old projects need maintenance, updates, patches, etc… a developer can move from the 95/5 ratio closer to 75/25. 75% on new projects is still quite good.
But the killer ratio is when the sides change. When a developer goes under 50/50, there is a problem. Expectations have risen each year for the last few years. Resources have not. We are always encouraged to “do more, with less”. Sure 🙂
When my developers spend so much time babysitting old code, patching, etc… that new code takes 2-3 times as long, then campus members notice. They complain 🙂 I don’t blame them. They don’t understand. I am only just beginning to understand.
How do we change the future?
We slow down, for one. We cannot maintain a break-neck pace forever. The summer comes quickly. We will regroup, repair and rebuild some foundations.
We will analyze our projects, understand them. Automate them. Users should be able to use their seasonal apps without needing us to “prep” them. This is the goal for existing and new code. Having a huge codebase in the Portal has enabled us to simultaneously update CSS, security, etc…
But we must remain vigilant.
The future is what we make it. We cannot continue to pay the price of “heads-down” development and trying to work harder. When an inefficiency has been identified, it must be resolved. That’s my job. Updating the list, and including periods of rebuilding must occur. It will occur. Will it take “longer” to release apps? In the short term, perhaps. But it’s a short-term loss, long-term gain. I also cannot run my people near redline for long periods of time. Everyone has to catch a deep breath. Then we push on. Stronger than ever.