Why All Business Leaders Should Care About Technical Debt, Volume 1

In the not too distant past, technology investment was often considered more like the complimentary chips and salsa delivered before the meal than the meal itself. Meaning, there was a time when technology could be a consideration as opposed to a requirement.

A decade ago, technology complimented the business experience, but business success certainly didn’t rely on it.

What is technical debt?

According to Osias and Fisch, technical debt “refers to the inefficiencies and waste that arise when IT resources no longer meet an organization’s needs.”

While many believe this debt refers solely to a subpar software coding delivery, in reality, technical debt “encompass(es) everything from code and applications to physical hardware.” And it if often the latter that packs the biggest financial punch.

It’s no surprise that technical debt is the Achilles’ Heel for many technology professionals. A recent survey showed that 86% of technology executives have been impacted by technical debt within the previous 12 months.

Yes, it’s a problem. Yes, it needs to be unearthed. Yes, there needs to be a plan to mitigate that looming impediment to top business performance.

The criticality of technology on business

Technical debt wouldn’t create such heartburn for tech leaders if the status of technology in the business world had not pivoted from a ‘nice to have’ to a ‘can’t live without’.

There is so much that can be done with excellence without technology – or is there? Of course we know that technology plays an integral role in mass-everything – production, delivery, retail. But are we forgetting the mom and pops, small businesses, sole proprietorships?

According to a new U.S. Chamber of Commerce survey examining the impact technology platforms have on small businesses and the economy:

• 95 percent of small business owners in the U.S. report using at least one type of technology platform in the running of their business.
• Technology and data are seen as the backbone of operations for many small businesses.
• For small businesses with very-high tech usage—those that use six or more types of technology — four out of five report growth in sales, employment, and profits.
• 78 percent of small businesses reported that technology platforms helped them cope with burdens of inflation and supply chain disruptions without passing rising costs on to consumers.
• Seven out of ten small business owners agree that without access to technology platforms, their businesses would struggle to survive.
• Nearly three in four small businesses articulated that tech helped them compete with larger companies and that same number indicated that losing access to data would harm their operations.

From small business to large, the impact of technology facilitates impact, efficiency, demand and survivability.

Businesses use of technology is only outweighed by technology’s positive impact on business. In layman’s terms, technology is kind of a big deal on business.

Why should I care about technical debt?

Technical debt is the result of investment made in technology alongside the expected lifespan of that technology coupled with the dramatic pace of technology change and improvement.

When technology investment is made in a reactive fashion or doubles down on ‘how we’ve always done things’, the negative impact of that debt rears its head earlier while being almost impossible to address with any level of fiscal responsibility.

According to Software AG Research, “despite its importance, and even though 82% say they can assess all or most of their technical debt, more than half (58%) don’t have a formal strategy for managing it.”

Yikes.

Meanwhile, despite timelines, dollars and conversation, the impact of technical debt in a business is often outweighed by security and scalability risks. It’s often more dangerous to not tackle the technical debt than to address it head on and with urgency.

For technology leaders, it can be difficult to prioritize the conversation surrounding the need for seemingly duplicative spend. Especially if they are the leader that rallied for the large purchase in question yesterday.

While it’s easier to ignore the reality, it’s immeasurably more dangerous to not tackle it with a swiftness. No matter who made the purchase, when, and under what circumstances.

Next steps

What if I’m not in a position to tackle the technical debt today? How do I know the time is right to tackle technical debt? How do I manage the conversation with clarity, accountability, and priority?

Now that there is clarity around (1) the what, (2) the importance and (3) the why, stay tuned for the next installement addressing how to tackle the technical debt beast – for the betterment and security of the business.

Click the follow link above (image below) so you will receive notification of the next chapter in this conversation. The instructions will be simple, direct, doable and easy to replicate.