Feature? Or Bug?

Hang out in the world of Software Development for pretty much any length of time, and you’re sure to hit a DeathMarch (•). You know, the kind that goes, “WE HAVE 17 DAYS TO RELEASE ALL HANDS OF DECK LATE NIGHTS MOAR COFFEE …”.

Oh, there might ben occasional “justified” one — I recall an instance when a Very Important Client basically told us to add a feature within the month, or they’d switch, and switching meant that we’d be out of business. Result — lots of pain and suffering on our part, but it was that, or around 45 people being out of jobs.
(And yes, we did, eventually, manage to rebalance our clients so that this wouldn’t happen again…)

That said, most of them tend to be due to some form of screwup in the development process — be it requirements, expectations, or whatever.
However, there are those organizations (quite prevalent in #TechBro culture), where late nights are a way of life. Beware these! In particular, look out for two specific types

  1. Self-Induced: Here, overwork is considered a badge of honor. Spend any amount of time with the folks, and the inevitable bragging revolves around how many “all-nighters” they pulled, how many lunch/dinners they’ve had at work, how the commute gives them “quiet time” to work, etc.
  2. Management-Induced: Here, the system is deliberately structured around extracting the very last ounce of capability from the employees. Work/Life balance is more like “Work balance”, timeframes are always compressed, and everything is always on the edge. Cancelled vacations tend to be the norm.

Beware these environments, and if you have any agency whatsoever, stay the heck away from them…

(•) I suspect Deathmarches are fractal in nature — they occur at every scale..

(This article also appears on my blog)

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