Balancing Act: Managing Technical Debt in Rapid Development

It’s January, hopefully you haven’t amassed too much debt from the Holiday season and the sales! In technology, there is a different kind of debt called technical debt. This is where as technology/engineering teams, put improvements and fixes on the back burner to prioritize other features or business needs.

In the paced world of technology startups, the speed at which development occurs is often a factor, in achieving success. However, this haste can sometimes result in what's known as "debt" – a term that signifies shortcuts taken during software development that may hinder progress. Balancing development with the creation of code that's maintainable and scalable is an intricate skill that necessitates strategic thinking and foresight.

To begin with, it's important to acknowledge that not all technical debt should be viewed as negative. During the stages of a startup making calculated shortcuts can expedite product launches and entry into the market. The key lies in being strategic about where these corners are cut and having a plan for addressing these shortcuts in due course. From my experience, I like to label ‘good’ and ‘bad’ debt (like in the world of finance). In finance, good debt is debt that is paid by other funds outside your salary (like buying a house and paying the mortgage with the rental income). To me, ‘good’ technical debt, is strategically deprioritized, though documented issues, features, etc. Decisions were made to prioritize value-added or more important work items that meet business priorities.

Whereas, ‘bad’ technical debt, just comes from a lack of oversight, code / technical reviews, a lack of code scanning, and security reviews. It can also be a result of poor planning and architecture. As a result of poor practices and planning, can slow down the development process (bulky codebases, lack of code reuse, poor UX).

As your startup expands unmanaged technical debt can present challenges. It can lead to a decline in code quality, making scaling your product more difficult and ultimately impeding your development speed – which was initially intended to be enhanced by taking on debt.

To effectively manage debt consider implementing the following strategies;

1. Raise Awareness and Document; Make sure your team is fully aware of the debt they are accumulating while also documenting it. This will assist in prioritizing and addressing this debt during development cycles.

2. Conduct Code. Refactoring; Regular code reviews can be beneficial, in identifying areas where technical debt is accumulating. To continually improve the codebase and reduce the burden of this debt it is important to integrate refactoring into the development process. I like to use tools like SonarCube to help with the review process. For each pull request (code handling action in the code repository), SonarCube scans the code being committed and helps the developer understand how they can improve the security, structure, and quality of the code. It also gives the Tech Lead a top-down view of platform code quality.

Implementing testing plays a role in detecting issues early on and maintaining high code quality. This helps prevent the long-term accumulation of debt. Depending on the business/project, I would recommend using Test Driven Development, where developers help with the QA process.

To effectively manage debt it is essential to strike a balance between feature development and maintenance work. Allocating sprints or portions of sprints to address debt ensures that it receives proper attention alongside other priorities. For larger projects, I like to use JIRA to manage sprints and Epics. Each month, it’s recommended to have an engineering team review session, looking at factors including technical debt and progress in balancing the debt.

For me, communication with technical stakeholders about the significance of managing technical debt is vital. Educating them about its impact and garnering their support in allocating resources and time contributes to management. It may be difficult for non-technical / business-facing stakeholders to understand the implications of not managing technical debt. By planning and tracking your technical debt, it’s easier to estimate and communicate the value of reducing debts or the risks of not doing so. This makes it easier for the Product team & and stakeholders to also estimate when new features and be completed, with fewer surprises or delays.

When making decisions scalability should be a consideration. Although this may require investment, it pays off in the long run by ensuring adaptability and growth potential for the project.

In summary, managing debt involves finding a balance. The key difference lies in the planning and awareness surrounding the debt. Good debt is acknowledged and managed, whereas bad debt accumulates silently and becomes a barrier to progress.? It's not eliminating it but effectively managing it to ensure project health and scalability over time. By incorporating these strategies technology leaders can guide their teams toward growth while establishing a foundation, for future endeavors.

Need help with managing your technical debt? Message me or book a call.