Balancing code and life: Insights from developers

In a comprehensive survey conducted by Storyblok, 200 senior developers from medium to large brands revealed the tools and circumstances that enhance their productivity. The results shed light on the role of AI in coding, job satisfaction, and stress levels that developers face.

With AI becoming a crucial part of developers' toolkits, an astounding 89.5% of developers reported frequent or constant use. They cited increasing efficiency as the top reason for AI adoption, along with automating routine tasks and improving skillset.

When pondering future roles, a portion of developers (~29%) felt they could fully handle marketing tasks, highlighting AI's versatility. Meanwhile, 45.5% believed they could manage most tasks, illustrating the growing confidence in AI's support in various domains.

Developers show a clear preference for AI over human assistance. 34% preferred seeking AI assistance for work problems, surpassing the 20% who would consult colleagues, illustrating a shift towards tech-based problem-solving.

Most developers expressed contentment with their work-life balance, with a significant 66% satisfied, and only 2% dissatisfied. Stress management showed varied results, but notably, 13% claimed they were ‘always stressed’ while an equivalent proportion saying they are 'never stressed', with all others falling between. This indicates room for improvement in stress management strategies.

The survey highlighted challenges faced by developers, such as the tedious nature of maintaining legacy systems and navigating non-technical perspectives at work. Such issues contribute to discontent despite overall job satisfaction.

Furthermore, 25% of respondents admitted to frequent disputes with their partner over work issues. Despite this, a resounding 94% had no regrets about their career choices, showing persistence and passion in their profession.

Dominik Angerer, CEO and co-founder of Storyblok, said: “Developers are among the most exposed to the impact of technological developments, so gaining a deeper understanding of their personal workplace preferences, stresses, and productivity more broadly can help businesses determine how best to manage change, improve happiness, and productivity. For example, we see a clear problem with many developers being unable to switch off on holidays. Simple policy and expectation changes could alleviate this problem and may have the knock-on effect of lowering stress levels.”