How can you measure the impact of Agile refactoring on technical debt?

1 Why measure refactoring impact?

Refactoring can have both positive and negative effects on technical debt. On the one hand, refactoring can reduce technical debt by enhancing code quality, readability, maintainability, and extensibility. This can lower the risk of defects, errors, and rework in the future, as well as make the code easier to understand and modify. On the other hand, refactoring can also increase technical debt by introducing new complexity, dependencies, or inconsistencies in the code. This can raise the difficulty of testing, debugging, and integrating the code, as well as create new sources of technical debt. Therefore, it is important to measure the impact of refactoring on technical debt to ensure that it is worth the time and effort invested.

2 How to measure refactoring impact?

When measuring the impact of refactoring on technical debt, you can use different methods depending on the level of granularity and type of metrics. Code metrics are a good way to assess the quality and maintainability of code before and after refactoring. Tools like SonarQube, Code Climate, or NDepend can help calculate and compare code metrics. Code smells are indicators of potential issues or bad practices in your code, such as long methods, large classes, god objects, or feature envy. PMD, JDeodorant, or ReSharper can help identify and prioritize areas for refactoring. Lastly, the technical debt ratio is a measure of the estimated effort to fix all the issues in your code versus rewriting your code from scratch. This helps evaluate the overall health and sustainability of your code; tools like SonarQube, Code Climate, or NDepend can help calculate and monitor this ratio.

3 How to use refactoring impact data?

Once you have measured the impact of refactoring on technical debt, you can use this data to guide and improve your refactoring decisions and practices. For instance, you can use the data to set refactoring goals and priorities, such as reducing complexity or increasing test coverage, or to prioritize the most critical or beneficial refactoring tasks. Additionally, you can use the data to track your refactoring progress and outcomes, like the number of refactorings performed or the changes in code metrics. Furthermore, you can use the data to learn and improve from your refactoring experiences and feedback, like the challenges faced or best practices discovered. Finally, you can use the data to adjust and optimize your refactoring strategies and techniques.

4 How to balance refactoring and technical debt?

Refactoring is not a surefire solution for eliminating technical debt; it is a trade-off between the short-term costs and the long-term benefits of improving your code. Thus, you need to find a balance between refactoring and technical debt that suits your context and goals. When making this decision, you should take into account several factors such as business value, technical risk, and team capability. Business value can be measured in terms of customer satisfaction, revenue, or market share. Technical risk should be managed through testing, verification, and documentation. Team capability can be increased by providing autonomy, responsibility, and support to developers. Moreover, educating your team with awareness, understanding, and skills to manage technical debt is essential. All these elements should be taken into consideration when finding the right balance between refactoring and technical debt.

5 How to foster a refactoring culture?

Refactoring is not a one-time activity or a solo effort, but rather a continuous practice and collaborative process that requires a culture of quality, learning, and improvement. To foster such a culture in your Agile development team, you can adopt a refactoring mindset by embracing it as a normal and necessary part of your development cycle. Additionally, you can follow a refactoring workflow by applying the four steps of refactoring and using the three principles of refactoring. Lastly, you can use a refactoring toolbox by leveraging the tools and techniques that can help you perform refactoring effectively and efficiently.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?