Every engineering leader has faced it: the "ghost engineer." The teammate who collects a paycheck while contributing next to nothing—lurking in standups, committing barely visible code, and quietly dragging down morale.
New Stanford research just put a number to it: 9.5% of software engineers contribute almost no visible work. Across tech giants, that adds up to a staggering $11.6 billion wasted annually.
It’s tempting to blame the individual—to label a teammate as a “ghost engineer” and move on. But blame doesn’t solve the problem.
At Test Double, we’ve seen it time and again: Ghost engineers are made, not born. More often than not, they’re a symptom of deeper, systemic problems—overstaffing, shifting priorities, and metrics that reward activity over impact.
Yes, there’s a small slice of engineers who underperform, but they’re the exception, not the rule. Most ghost engineers are trapped in systems that fail to enable, align, or challenge them.
The good news? That’s a problem we can fix.
What is a ghost engineer, really?
When people talk about “ghost engineers,” they picture someone who’s checked out: no commits, no contributions, no visible output.
Let’s be honest: There are a few engineers who collect big paychecks without delivering much. They’re great at self-advocating but not at driving real business value. And yes, that’s frustrating and wasteful.
But for most, the reality is more nuanced:
- Misaligned: They’re working on the wrong thing because priorities are unclear or shifting constantly.
- Misdiagnosed: They’re doing invisible but critical work—like mentoring, debugging, or keeping the system stable—that traditional metrics fail to capture.
- Underutilized: Overstaffed teams simply don’t have enough meaningful work to go around, leaving engineers bored and disengaged.
Put simply, ghost engineers are what happens when systems fail teams.
Instead of blaming individuals, leaders need to ask harder questions:
- Are we overstaffed?
- Are we measuring the right things?
- Are engineers being given the support and challenges they need to thrive?
When we start asking these questions, ghost engineers stop looking like a people problem—and start looking like a leadership opportunity.
The real culprit: Overstaffing
If ghost engineers are a symptom, overstaffing is the disease.
For years, tech companies hired with one goal in mind: Meet peak demand. The thinking went like this: more people = faster delivery = competitive edge. And when hiring was a status symbol, growing headcount felt like a win in itself.
But here’s the problem: Demand is temporary. Headcount is not.
When roadmaps slow or demand drops—as they always do—overstaffed teams start to break down:
- Make-work creeps in: Too many engineers, not enough meaningful problems. Teams fill the void with low-value projects: UX tweaks no one asked for or endless refactors that add complexity without delivering results.
- Complexity compounds: More people means more dependencies, more overhead, and slower progress. Teams don’t speed up—they grind to a halt under their own weight.
- Culture erodes: High performers burn out carrying the load. Others fade into the background. Accountability slips. Morale tanks.
Overstaffing doesn’t just waste money—it undermines everything that makes a team healthy, motivated, and productive.
The worst part? It’s entirely avoidable.
The solution: Staff for sustainable capacity
If staffing for peak demand creates ghost engineers, the solution is simple: Don’t do it.
At Test Double, we’ve seen this work in practice. Here's a framework for sustainable staffing:
1. Hire full-time engineers for core stability
Your full-time team should be laser-focused on the essentials:
- Maintaining operational health
- Shipping critical features
- Tackling long-term, high-impact priorities
This is your foundation. These are the people who drive consistent, meaningful progress.
2. Create slack—without waste
Slack is healthy. It gives teams breathing room to address technical debt, improve scalability, and experiment with new ideas. But too much slack? That’s where ghost engineers thrive.
The key is balance: enough flexibility to innovate, not so much that teams drift into make-work.
3. Scale with contractors for temporary peaks
When demand spikes, don’t panic-hire. Bring in contractors to:
- Respond quickly: Scale up to meet the moment without long-term commitments.
- Stay focused: Keep your full-time team aligned on core priorities.
- Avoid bloat: When the spike passes, contractors roll off, leaving your team stronger—not stretched.
This approach doesn’t just save money—it builds a team that’s lean, adaptable, and resilient.
Fix the system, coach the people
If you’re ready to solve the ghost engineer problem, start with the system:
- Audit your team’s capacity: Does your team size match your roadmap? Are there enough meaningful problems to solve?
- Address underperformance early: Set clear expectations. Provide feedback. Offer coaching. When necessary, take decisive action—before it drags down the rest of the team.
- Stop hiring for peaks: Use contractors or trusted partners to scale up for temporary demands.
- Focus on outcomes, not outputs: Measure real business value. Did the work deliver impact? Did it improve reliability or scalability?
- Eliminate low-value work: Simplify your roadmap. Challenge projects that add complexity without delivering results.
Sustainable growth beats peak staffing
Ghost engineers aren’t a people problem—they’re a systems problem. Overstaffing, unclear priorities, and bad metrics create disengagement, inefficiency, and waste.
The good news? You can fix it.
By staffing for sustainable capacity and building a culture of clarity, focus, and accountability, you’ll create a team that’s:
- Lean and efficient
- Motivated and engaged
- Aligned to deliver lasting business value
So let’s fix the system. Stop chasing peak demand. Start building teams that thrive. And for the love of all things efficient, never staff to the peak.
