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Developers and Engineers are in high demand nowadays because companies in the high-tech industries are in constant need of their unique skills. Some companies will go so far as to offer impressive work environments and many creature comforts to entice engineers to sign up. However, this is no guarantee that your engineers will remain happy and motivated to work for you.

Keeping an engineer engaged isn’t rocket science. It is simply knowing what details to pay attention to and learning how to address some of their more subtle needs. Here are a few suggestions to help keep good engineers motivated to work for you.

Encourage Autonomy

One of the basic tenets in cultivating a productive environment is to give your engineers enough freedom to choose how to approach problems. Being too rigid with their time just so that they can complete their hours per day is not a smart approach because it doesn’t promote creativity and inspiration.

Building a great engineering team means understanding that generating ideas or lightbulb moments can happen almost anywhere whether it’s at a conference room, a coffee shop or even at the comfort of their own home. Allow them the flexibility to work in collaborative environments or in more solitary workspaces depending on their mood or temperament.

Emphasizing a results-oriented culture is essential. An atmosphere that allows them the freedom to work from anywhere, anytime provides a more fluid flow of creative thinking and problem solving that lets your team reach their potential.

Provide them with the latest tools

Imagine if a Formula 1 driver had to race with a Ford Model T or a Michelin star chef had to work with dull knives. You begin to realize how important the best tools are for your engineers. Having them work with antiquated software or outdated computers and servers may only foster frustration and drive them to work for the competition.

Technology advances very quickly and developers are always keen on learning new programming languages that help them write code faster or allows them to efficiently solve problems or challenges in developing software. 

It gives them a deep sense of pride when they are able to master the latest tools. This will reflect in their work and motivate them to complete more projects.

Ideally, it would be best to let the savvier engineers choose which tools they prefer to work with. Pairing the latest tools with your best engineers can result in unexpected innovations that can give your company an edge over competitors.

Have a meaningful mission and vision

It’s natural for people to want to be part of something bigger than themselves. Engineers are no different, they want to do work that is meaningful. Nothing can evoke more pride from an engineer than working on a project that had a positive impact on the community.

When your engineers understand and buy into your vision and mission, this changes their perspective on how they approach their work. They are more inspired to work on difficult challenges that may seem impossible to solve. They also develop a sense of accountability and see more value in their work.

Don’t forget to acknowledge engineers who are instrumental in accomplishing goals and objectives. This can be a simple gesture such as thanking them in public or creating a fun rewards program to recognise high performing team members.

By applying these principles, you empower the engineers to think above and beyond and frames their mind into achieving higher goals for themselves and for the projects they work on. This keeps them happy and motivated and imbues them with much pride for their work.

Do you need a highly motivated team of developers to help you realise your business goals? Contact us for a free consultation – call 0418967352 or email [email protected].