Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Applied To Software Engineering

Scott Sauber
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a model for understanding the motivations behind why people make the choices that they do. So how does this apply to software? In this Lean Bytes we’ll talk about how we can use Maslow’s, but apply it to software engineering to help us understand why software engineers write the code that they do at different points in their career.
What the heck is Lean BYTES?
Lean BYTES is a short, 16-minute (get it? two bytes equal 16 bits... #nerdjokes), presentation designed to provide you with the tools you need to take your teams to the next level in an easily consumable, shareable format.
Upcoming Lean Bytes
Don't miss our most recent rants and musings on everything software and technology.
October 6, 2026 - 11:45am — 12:01pm CT
Software Factories: What They Are and When You’re Ready for One

Patrick Robinson
In this Lean BYTES, Patrick Robinson will talk through what software factories are, where they sit in your agentic engineering maturity and how to get there.