The Regenerate Web

In my last post, I used an analogy between software development tools and religions.  I found the analogy amusing, and illustrative, and wanted to blather on for a bit about it.  Not all developers are religious, some developers do it for the money.  In this analogy, there are two breeds of software developers, mercenaries and zealots.  

Mercenaries are concerned about weapon proficiency.  They want to be comfortable using any weapon,  they know how to assemble and disassemble any kind of gun, can set up any development environment in a heartbeat.  They are focused on firepower, and maximum utility, pure take down.  They don't necessarily know the deepest secrets of the lore of the weapon manufacturer.  They are not gun collectors, they are marksmen.  They would select a weapon (software tool, language, compiler) for it's ability to produce software.  They will use whatever the customer provides, whatever their employer has available, they will become proficient on new tools quickly, because that is what they do.  That is how they survive and succeed.  Mercenaries are agnostic, or at least non-denominational.  They will use whatever is available and complain when it doesn't have sufficient firepower.

Zealots are a different breed.  They are always looking for the ultimate, the best, the most amazing, the most elegant, the most efficient, the most pure.  They have a need to believe, to believe that the tool that they have chosen is the best.  They are into the lore, they know the name, and some personal history of the original author of the language they have chosen.   They are part of the "community" for the tools that they choose.  They want to master, to tame, to understand how to wring, squeeze, or coax the last ounce of capability out of a tool.  They "go native", and understand the tool, in the way that it was designed.  They are focused on the beauty, the elegance of a solution, and they give credit to the tool, the community, and the original author for their contribution to the solution.  Zealots are often evangelistic, trying to drum up support for their religion.  They donate money to build the temple, and if they are lucky, will get to be a part of the priestly class (write a book, blog, or contribute to an open source project).  

Mercenaries take credit for their kills, whereas zealots bring the kills back to the commune.  Mercenaries share war stories, zealots post code galleries.  Zealots will spend time mentoring, indoctrinating, coaching, and holding court for anyone who will listen, mercenaries are either on a mission or in a bar.  Zealots retool out of frustration (with former tools), mercenaries retool out of expedience.  Mercenaries know how to use a tool, zealots know how the tool wants to be used.

Most of you who have been in this industry for a while have interacted with both breeds of software developers.  It is not that one is better than the other.  Both can write extremely solid code, very quickly, and under pressure.  There are probably other attributes that can be applied to each breed, but they would be generalizations.  Some developers can change breeds based on the situation, although each would have a default breed.  Others would struggle to shift breeds except under extreme duress.

As a manager, it is important to understand how your developers fit on this continuum.  Mercenaries and zealots are motivated differently.  Moreover, it is not just developers that follow this continuum - managers, project managers and analysts also have their ideologies.  It is important to understand, because at the extremes of the continuum there is very little understanding (or tolerance) of the other extreme.  

I myself lean a little toward the zealot.  I spend a lot of time in the world of ideas.  Strength or weakness?