In WordPress, I think utilities should be categorized and placed in a different location than plug-ins.  The difference between the two is, of course, they’re installed like plug-ins but a utility does not affect the processing of content to live pages, plug-ins do.  Often, these routines you run as utilities don’t affect anything else until they are actually run.

Then they lay dormant again, taking up space in your plug-in list, subjecting you to the ridicule of “Whoa, another plug-in, I see.  Do you web developers even write code anymore?”  Funny, you wouldn’t ask the car engineers to build the tires to test the design, but often those who don’t understand web development, the process, the tools and available frameworks and libraries readily available would ask web developers essentially to “build the tires” to go on the car each and every time.

The next time a non-developer wants to perhaps pass judgement or criticize their web development team, someone should ask them if the car design team at Toyota should allocate any of their time and talent dedicated to working on things that are unnecessary, like making tires for the new car?!  That would be absurd, right?

Why?  When you take time away from your web development team to work on things where solutions are already available, you take time and energy away from allowing them to focus on solving actual challenges unique to your company.

Also, criticizing others about their work is never a good idea, you are welcoming closer scrutiny of your own, this applies to any workplace environment.  So, unless you have a firm grasp and understanding of the technical aspects of the tasks involved, perhaps instead of assuming your web development team is incompetent, think about how you will feel when others judge your work without knowing all the facts or understanding what you do.  It’s never a good idea to criticize, especially openly, your co-workers, but in this market especially, perhaps trying to ask, learn and understand the work involved in web development will perhaps give those non-developers a better understanding and appreciation of the web development teams’ skills, knowledge, and experience.