Grunt Work in Software Engineering: The Silent Productivity Killer

In 2022, I joined a Developer Experience (DX) team focused on building internal tools to improve developer productivity.

We had a well-funded team with big ambitions, and at first, things went smoothly. Our process was simple: listen to developers' pain points and solve them.

However, after about six months, we noticed a sharp decline in our internal productivity. I started investigating why—and the answer surprised me.

We were avoiding grunt work.

What is Grunt Work?

Grunt work in software engineering refers to necessary but tedious tasks that no one wants to do.

These tasks may seem small at first but can snowball into major obstacles. Here are six of the most commonly ignored types of grunt work in software engineering.

Grunt 1: Pull Request Reviews

The first and most obvious type of grunt work is pull request (PR) reviews, something I personally struggled with the most.

If your team values software quality, PR reviews are essential to the development cycle. They help maintain high standards and improve the overall product.

The problem? Delays.

When reviews take too long, they block progress. This often happens because developers prioritize their own tasks over the team's efficiency.

Shifting the mindset from "my productivity first" to "team productivity first" makes a huge difference. When engineers recognize that unreviewed PRs are blockers, they’ll take them more seriously.

Grunt 2: Dependency Management

PR reviews may be a major bottleneck, but another commonly neglected task is keeping dependencies up to date. I understand—it’s tedious and often deprioritized. But ignoring it comes with hidden costs.

Let's take either Dependabot or Renovate as an example. They automatically open PRs every week, but they often seem like minor changes—easy to postpone.

Before you know it, you’re stuck with 5+ open dependency update PRs, adding unnecessary clutter.

My problem with this isn't about the dependencies themselves. It's more about the unnecessary cognitive load. If you're working across multiple repositories and see 10 open PRs—8 of them for dependencies—it creates unnecessary cognitive load.

To fix this, consider:

• Prioritizing dependency updates instead of postponing them.
• Automating the update process to reduce manual effort.
• Grouping multiple PRs into one, using custom configurations to streamline updates.

Grunt 3: Cognitive Load

As software evolves, so does its complexity. Over time, this complexity leads to increased cognitive load—the mental effort required to understand and work with the codebase.

This is often referred to as 'tech erosion' or 'code rot.

We need a better approach. Treating refactoring as a separate task—like “Refactor X or Y”—is counterproductive. Instead, make code improvement a habit within the development lifecycle.

Aim to leave the codebase better than you found it—a simple yet powerful principle.

Grunt 4: Testing

Good tests make development safer and more efficient, yet writing them often feels like a chore. Many developers acknowledge the importance of testing but still put it off.

I'm not here to convince you why you should write tests. If you're a seasoned software developer then you know that any serious project would require tests.

Many developers find writing tests tedious and often skip them entirely. So, how do we fix this?

One approach is to enforce testing with automated code coverage tools, but that often leads to gaming the system rather than real quality improvements.

Instead, lead by example and make writing tests effortless. Integrate testing into the development lifecycle and make it a CI pipeline requirement.

Encourage developers to test major features, and when refactoring time comes, they’ll see firsthand how much safer and easier it is to work with well-tested code.

Grunt 5: Marketing

When developing internal tools in a large company, you likely won’t have a dedicated marketing team. But without visibility, even the best tools go unused.

An internal tool is useless if no one knows about it. In a collaborative environment, treat fellow engineers as customers—your tool needs visibility to gain adoption.

If people don’t know it exists, they won’t even give it a chance.

That’s why it’s worth investing some time in showcasing your work. One simple approach I use is a “Friday Showcase” on Slack, where I post a brief update in a channel our users follow. It highlights what we’ve built, what’s improved, and what’s coming next—helping drive engagement and adoption.

Grunt 6: Documenting and Showcasing

The last, but arguably one of the most valuable, types of grunt work is documentation and visibility. Developers often dislike these tasks, yet they provide some of the highest career returns.

The average software engineer tends to be introverted, so I understand the reluctance to focus on documentation. However, it's essential. Imagine onboarding to a new project with no documentation—it’s frustrating and time-consuming.

If you've ever benefited from well-written docs, you know how valuable they are. Writing documentation is not just about helping others; it's also a way to make impactful, visible contributions that you can highlight to your manager.

Showcasing your work is crucial, especially in large organizations where it's easy to go unnoticed. If you want to advance in your career, consistently highlighting your impact is one of the best ways to stand out.

Conclusion

Ignoring grunt work doesn’t just slow you down—it affects the entire team. By actively addressing these small but crucial tasks, you’ll not only improve developer productivity but also set yourself up for long-term success.

Thanks for reading.