It often IS your job to write code though, so saying it's not is false. The code has to be the right code however.
More generally, "you are solving business problems by applying software systems"
That's how I describe this to junior folks. The goal is to make them focus on the business need, then they can sub critical thinking for MBAs/managers/PMs and do the right thing.
I don't mind the way codingdave put it, though. Sometimes it isn't your job to write code. In fact sometimes it's the opposite, and your job is to talk to people and explain to them why code doesn't need to be written.
Saying, "It's not your job to write code," might seem technically false, but in terms of getting the message across, I think it's striking and it works well. And getting the message across is the goal of communication, moreso than being 100% accurate.
Agreed. Just like it's not a carpenters job to hammer nails. It can be the job sometimes but other times it's not needed to build something.
Just like solving the problem might be to remove code. Or to inform the user of tools that already exist but haven't been documented enough for the user to know about them.
A carpenter solves problems with wood. Sure, they communicate with customers, measure and draw, sometimes say "it can't be safely done"... But if you remove the part where they make a product out of wood, I don't think they are carpenter. They are.. a home solution specialist, something?
If my job was directing others to open source tools and removing dead code, I'm not a developer.
More generally, "you are solving business problems by applying software systems"
That's how I describe this to junior folks. The goal is to make them focus on the business need, then they can sub critical thinking for MBAs/managers/PMs and do the right thing.