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I have recently joined an organisation which is public funded. In my team there are couple of senior developers and in my project there is a guy who joined here as a fresher. Well the problem is he really writes a crappy code and when I gave some hint to write good quality code he told me no one matters as management wants to see only visible changes.

I understand this thinking because unlike some software company the projects are not main source of income for them and they just need projects to get more funding.

About other senior developers they are in some other project and rarely communicate with us or talk about code reviews etc. they seem to be too relaxed and enjoying perks.

I had high hopes to learn things but now I seem to loose tracks on how to do, any request to review or refactor will surely be rejected as it adds nothing visible to projects.

How can I use the relaxing environment here to make myself better programmer?

PS: I used to do consulting for Google and hence know the value of good team and code reviews.

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  • Assuming this is the research organization you're trying to quit from your other question. Not an answer 'cause it's way too short but, why not make a skunk works project? When your main product is not software, reviewing and refactoring just seem silly - it's not going to be around next time anyway. You could build a tool or system that benefits the org and has visible results. Perhaps something that makes the one-off software projects easier, faster, higher quality. It sounds like you would have time from the "relaxing environment"
    – you saved my life
    Aug 18, 2017 at 13:56
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    If you know a good team and code when you see them, start figuring-out how to make inquiries during the interview process (you interview the company, they don't just interview you), so you make a job choice that suits your needs.
    – user8365
    Aug 18, 2017 at 13:57
  • @JeffO in that case I would say they don't tell truth. I was told that there are proper code reviews.
    – john doe
    Aug 18, 2017 at 15:14
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    @johndoe this isnt marked a duplicate anymore and only person flagged it that way. If you are so against advice why did you come here?
    – SaggingRufus
    Aug 18, 2017 at 22:29
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    @johndoe - Your situation could improve with the hiring of a new boss and maybe you could be a part of the interview process or just wait until your next job. My experience has been that when people lie, they usually trip up with follow-up questions or answers to other questions don't make sense in the context of previous answers. You don't need a good memory if you tell the truth.
    – user8365
    Aug 25, 2017 at 17:22

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When I started in my job, there was a 'good enough' attitude. Not in the way that this works let's ship it, more like, this bug probably wont see the light of day so we will leave it until someone complains even though we could fix it.

What I did was try to motivate the rest of my team that what we do is important and we should take pride in the work that we do. I did this by setting an example.

Your co-worker is probably right. Your manager probably does only care about things that are visible, what you need to show is show why these things are important. When I was trying to make my case that what we called good enough was not good enough, I took samples of our code and showed how there no way change a certain section with re-working a large portion of the program. This was because the section of code had a lot of hard coding. After I found a few examples of this, I was able to show that by taking this laid back style, we were actually making more work for ourselves in the future (and not in a good way).

If you are able to show your supervisor (who will hopefully pass it on to the manager) that better code will save them money, they might change their stance.

This won't change over night. It took me over a year to get people onboard and there are still people who are not. I was able to convince most of my team and that was enough to vastly improve most of our code set. The key is to be the example and make sure your code is the best it can be.

If none of this works, consider coding in your spare time at home. Practicing your skills and working on complex problem is what will make you a better programmer. So if you cannot get people to see the value in good code, start working on side project when you are off the clock at home. Pick something you have never done before (and don't even know how to start) and take that project to completion.

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  • Frankly speaking I would like to be a good student than be a bad master. I don't think my knowledge has reached a saturation level and I should now train others, I understand the importance of the collaboration and I experienced it, believe me most of the thingsI know and learned was from code reviews and great team at Google. The advice you are giving is when I am about to retire and know that I can't learn beyond this point.
    – john doe
    Aug 18, 2017 at 15:17
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    And believe me no cares about the code written at home, there have been times where I tried to get code reviews but people are happy to gives reviews on toy problems. It was a sad experience but my questions hardly crossed 100views and no answers and at the end I had to delete it. My other questions on merge sort received more than 1000 views although every other people ask the same question.
    – john doe
    Aug 18, 2017 at 15:19
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    Its not a about teaching, its still about learning. If you are unhappy that people have a good enough attitude, then be the example and make them want to strive for greatness. No one is expecting you to be a master, nor should you expect that from them. Good coding is just as much attitude as it is know-how. I know that no one cares about the code you write at home, that's not the point. The point is self growth. Taking something you have no idea about and learning it. That's what makes a good programmer.
    – SaggingRufus
    Aug 18, 2017 at 16:36
  • So, basically the whole idea about a great environment is a myth? team work is a waste? the whole Google culture which it fosters on and has produced so many great programmers is useless? Sorry I would agree to disagree not just because you are wrong but what you are saying is not true always.
    – john doe
    Aug 18, 2017 at 19:55
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    @johndoe SaggingRufus never says the great environment is a myth or team work is a waste He's telling you that if you don't like your environment, then take the necessary steps to change it yourself. Yes, it is easier to be taught than to teach yourself and then others. But it doesn't sound like you have willing colleagues. So do as SaggingRufus says and take control of the situation and try to learn enough about the perceived issues so that you can teach your colleagues.
    – RanIntoTheCuckoosNest
    Aug 18, 2017 at 20:43

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