What can I do as individual when there are not productivity incentives?
For example: I have been assigned a task that is estimated to be done in 3 days, let's assume it was well estimated.
Because of my skills, I can only finish it in one day.
But if I finish it, the team leader will assign me more tasks.
So my reward for being productive is more work.
So why should I be more productive if I'm just going to have more work to do with no bonus?
Remember, this scenario is as an individual software engineer, not as a company.
What do you think? should I change my mindset? if yes, what are the reasons?
If there is nothing I could do as individual, what do you suggest to handle this with my manager? if they don't want to give bonuses or incentives, should I leave?
Discussion
(8 comments)- 3a month agoEng @ Taro
So why should I be more productive if I'm just going to have more work to do with no bonus?
What do you think? should I change my mindset? if yes, what are the reasons?
It's a good question to ask yourself. If you don't feel like you are being compensated for going above and beyond, there's no incentive for you to work harder, except for intrinsic motivation.
If you are feeling short-changed, and your company can't compensate you for your troubles, it may be worth it to explore different companies.
On a non-compensation level, I do think that it's more fulfilling to push yourself more to grow technically, otherwise, you'll stagnate and get bored. If you are working the same number of hours a day, you might as well be working on something that pushes you more because there's a rush to doing something challenging.
It might be an interesting exercise for you to think more about what you are looking for in the next 3/6/9/12 months. If you have a goal, like performance review or interviewing at a new company, you can work backwards to think about what kind of narrative you want to present during these evaluations. What would really make you proud and stand out against everyone else?
- 0a month agoSenior Software Engineer [OP]Taro Community
Yeah, makes sense to think on the future, in another company, I liked your tips for that, thank you!
- 1
a month agoTech Lead @ Robinhood, Meta, Course HeroAh, this is the classic scenario. If you feel like your company doesn't reward you at all for getting more stuff done (no higher performance review rating, no additional bonus/raise, no promotion), then it sounds like you should funnel that extra time into either interviewing, building side projects, and/or enjoying your personal life more.
Things get interesting when you do feel like the company rewards you for doing more work. There's actually 2 options here:
- Finish it early and get more of the same kind of work - Again, if the company rewards you for this, you will come out ahead.
- Use that extra time to create scope - This is what I recommend for you as a senior engineer. Instead of doing more of the same type of work (this can get you higher ratings but usually not a promotion, especially for Staff), look for bigger, more exciting, and more challenging opportunities. Think of it as building an internal side project for your job. Here's a good case study example: [Case Study] Building A Meta Internal Tool To Empower An Entire Org: Staff Promotion Story
- 1a month agoSenior Software Engineer [OP]Taro Community
Cool, those 3 options makes a lot of sense to me, I already have applied the time building side projects and enjoying my personal life more, but feeling like I was not really progressing on my career.
I'm not sure if this is a personal issue, but I also think: Does this company deserve my skills to the limit? what if I put my skills on a better use, like for myself building side projects?
Probably at that point, I'm probably on the wrong company 😅
Totally helpful your insights, thank you!
- 1a month agoTech Lead @ Robinhood, Meta, Course Hero
Yeah, if you feel like your company doesn't give you anything in return for pushing yourself to the max, just don't do it (try to hit expectations using as little time as possible and divert everything that's remaining towards something better). Time and energy are critical resources, more important than $$$ - Don't funnel it into a black hole that just swallows it and returns nothing.
- 0
a month agoHelpful TarodactylTaro CommunityAlex and Charlie had some pretty good comments. One question I have as a follow-up is across what time frame do you need to know that you feel under rewarded? There’s the ‘too long’ spectrum where this engineer probably wait way too long to switch , but I also think it’d be a bit too short-sighted to expect your efforts to be rewarded in a month. So where’s the sweet spot?
- 0a month agoSenior Software Engineer [OP]Taro Community
Good consideration, I would say maximum one quarter 🤔 because that is usually the time frame companies use for goals, maybe?
- 1a month agoTech Lead @ Robinhood, Meta, Course Hero
The immediate reward you should get is good feedback from your manager and peers alongside the feeling and realizing of personal growth.
When it comes to concrete rewards, that generally takes a while, aligning to a company's performance review cycles. That's every 6-12 months, and in this market, realizing a promotion, performance review rating bump, or raise will take longer.
It's a tricky balance to strike being patient for rewards vs. jumping ship (which also bears a cost as interviewing sucks, especially now).
