People want to have purpose. If you don’t give them a purpose, then they’ll make their own.

Tell me if you've heard this one before:

Bright engineer that constantly seems to get side-tracked solving problems that aren't really problems and don't contribute to the organization's deliverables.

The engineer lacks a clear purpose (other than to fulfill user stories) and end up finding other outlets for their energy.

This is typical in organizations where engineering is viewed as a service to the business rather than a partner in it.

Engineering teams are held at arms-length from the business and product parts of the organization and get handed tasks that don't come with a broader context.

Breaking down some of these barriers can have a big impact on engagement from your engineers. Just having the product organization periodically highlight how delivered features impact business results can really motivate people.

Give your engineers context and purpose and they will be more invested in outcomes rather than just completing tasks.