“Technical debt” is racking up for some organizations, and if not managed properly, it can become a real obstacle to innovation, say Sharon Stufflebeme, managing director with global consulting firm Protiviti.
Stufflebeme, who leads the firm’s technology strategy and advisory practice, spoke with StrategicCIO360 about what constitutes technical debt, how AI can help ferret it out and why now is the time to pay attention to the issue.
What is technical debt and why is it a significant hurdle for CIOs and their teams as they pursue innovation strategies?
Technical debt is a term describing the consequences and expenses associated with supporting legacy systems that are difficult, if not impossible, to update to modern technologies. Technical debt can also be used to describe the long-term budgetary and labor costs of suboptimal software development practices, shortcuts or hasty decisions taken during the design, coding and implementation phases of a project.
Paying down technical debt often requires additional rework needed to correct and refactor compromised code or architecture. Much like financial debt, technical debt accumulates interest in the form of increased maintenance costs, reduced system flexibility and compromised performance or reliability, which can hinder the overall progress of a project.
There are several reasons why technical debt represents a significant challenge for CIOs and their teams as their organizations pursue innovation strategies. First, high levels of technical debt can lead to increased maintenance costs, as more resources are needed to address issues arising from compromised code. This often diverts funds from innovation initiatives, limiting the organization’s ability to invest in new technologies, products and services.
Second, technical debt can cause delays in the development and delivery of new features or improvements. Introducing new features or capabilities may drive the need to refactor and correct existing issues, which consumes valuable time and effort, slowing time to value for the new features and reducing the organization’s agility and ability to respond quickly to market demands or opportunities.
What challenges do CIOs face today as they navigate through change and manage technical debt to achieve business success?
For CIOs, managing technical debt presents several challenges that require careful consideration. These challenges include managing change, aligning business objectives, prioritizing initiatives, ensuring cybersecurity and managing talent. It is crucial to strike a balance between driving innovation and servicing technical debt while allocating resources effectively to ensure both short-term and long-term success.
CIOs must collaborate with other business units to identify opportunities for innovation and prioritize projects that deliver tangible value. Additionally, reducing the vulnerabilities created by technical debt is a critical priority to ensure data security and compliance with regulatory requirements.
To excel in a rapidly evolving technology landscape, a skilled workforce that can adapt to new tools and methodologies is required. CIOs must manage technical debt’s impact on employee morale and productivity while attracting, retaining and upskilling talent.
How can CIOs and IT teams leverage new emerging technologies in the technical debt management process?
Technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning can be employed to analyze codebases, identify patterns and detect anomalies indicative of technical debt. AI and ML can also help predict the potential impact of unresolved issues and prioritize refactoring efforts based on risk and business value. By leveraging AI and ML, CIOs can make informed decisions about where to focus their resources and ensure that technical debt does not hinder innovation.
Automated testing and continuous integration can minimize the accumulation of technical debt by ensuring that code quality remains high throughout the development and maintenance process. This approach helps IT teams to identify and resolve issues early on, while also providing a safety net for refactoring efforts.
DevOps and agile methodologies enable IT teams to streamline the development process while fostering a culture of continuous improvement. These methodologies emphasize collaboration, automation and rapid feedback loops, which can help teams identify and address technical debt more proactively.
Migrating to cloud-based infrastructure and services can alleviate some forms of technical debt by providing scalable, flexible and cost-effective solutions. The cloud enables organizations to take advantage of the latest technologies and best practices without the need for costly and time-consuming infrastructure upgrades.
Finally, application performance management tools can help monitor and analyze the performance of applications in real-time, providing valuable insights into areas where technical debt may be impacting system stability, efficiency or user experience.
What are some factors CIOs need to keep in mind today as they take on new technical debt to pursue their innovation goals?
For CIOs, it is imperative to strike a balance between pursuing innovation goals and managing technical debt. While the pursuit of new technologies and innovative solutions is crucial for an organization’s growth, it is equally important to minimize the accumulation of technical debt. This can be achieved by adopting a mindful and strategic approach to decision-making, ensuring that projects and resources are aligned with the organization’s overall objectives.
CIOs should prioritize projects based on their potential business impact, taking into account both the benefits of innovation and the cost of technical debt. This requires a clear understanding of the trade-offs involved and a strong alignment with the organization’s overall goals and objectives.
As the technology landscape evolves, CIOs must conduct thorough risk assessments to evaluate potential consequences and devise mitigation strategies to address emerging technical debt. Also, CIOs should focus on smaller, incremental improvements rather than large-scale overhauls. This can achieve better time-to-value, more manageable levels of technical debt and minimize the risk of significant setbacks due to unforeseen complications.
CIOs should maintain open communication with stakeholders about the rationale behind evolving technical debt and the plan to address it. Transparency can help manage expectations and foster collaboration between business units and IT teams, ensuring that everyone is on the same page and working towards a common goal.
Proactive management, such as continually evaluating and adjusting strategies as needed, ensures that technical debt does not spiral out of control, and the organization remains on a sustainable path towards innovation and growth.
Striking the right balance between innovation and technical debt management requires a strategic, iterative and transparent approach, with a strong focus on risk assessment, business alignment and stakeholder communication.
