From a Product Management standpoint, this is good advice.
But what do you do when you're a software developer who sees these problems but have your hands tied by management?
But what do you do when you're a software developer who sees these problems but have your hands tied by management?
If you can't get your boss' approval or there is existing product management, you can try sitting down informally with them. Explain your concerns, but be tactful (this part is hard for many engineers who are completely data driven). You have to be careful not to get people defensive. Go in with an attitude of "I see this as suboptimal, teach me why I'm wrong" instead of "You're an idiot, you should be doing this thing instead". Make sure you are being objective, though. I've had engineers fight me on what "should" be done because they were only looking at technology instead of the whole business.
If neither of those work, you are probably going to get frustrated quickly. Few things did more damage to my team's morale than feeling like they were working on something useless.
Step 2: If you know a better way, propose it to them and build consensus to make your idea happen.
Step 3: If the company is on a bad trajectory and step 1 or 2 don't make you feel better, find somewhere where that isn't the case.
I've been a product manager for 5 years or so now. It amazes me how many devs have bad product manager experiences. Because of mismanagement, you're probably spending 30 - 100% of your time doing wasted work. Im sorry.