Technical Debt: How to Balance Technical Debt and New Projects

This article explores the challenges government CIOs face in balancing the need to address technical debt within an organization and the desire and need to implement new systems and innovations.

Let us define technical debt within an information technology (IT) organization. Gartner has identified technical debt as work that is "owed" to an IT system. This definition and description can apply to software engineering, off-the-shelf software, or hardware systems. Technical debt due to deferred maintenance not only adds to support costs but also puts the service provided by the organization at risk.

In the various aspects of an IT team, managing technical debt may include legacy systems, staff retirements that have caused a knowledge gap, a lack of prioritization to update or remove the old system, or the adage, "if it is not broken, do not fix it." Whatever the case, this technical debt has put the organization at risk from a security and service availability perspective.

Ignoring technical debt can increase costs and risk. Ignoring technical debt in an organization can have significant and wide-ranging impacts. This debt can decrease system performance from inefficient code and outdated architecture. Users may see these issues impact their services. In addition, they are more prone to failures and downtime, disrupting operations and potentially leading to costly outages. Having old equipment on the shelf to replace this technical debt may be a valid quick fix for aging hardware, but it continues to cost the organization and staff time and money in the long run.

“When implementing new projects, awareness of existing debt provides an opportunity to mitigate it. Adding this to the project scope allows the project team to run parallel efforts to implement a new system and address the technical debt simultaneously.”

IT staff may become frustrated and demotivated when constantly dealing with the same recurring issues due to technical debt. Technical debt can significantly slow down processes. Outdated systems are typically less efficient when making changes and applying patches, and they can delay project times or even prevent some tasks from being completed. These obsolete systems often include outdated and unsupported components that can become security vulnerabilities or non-compliance with industry standards and regulations, resulting in legal repercussions and fines.

These technical debts hinder innovation, and their management involves few options. Initially, keeping technical debt at the forefront of your project list is vital. This includes creating and reviewing a technical debt register regularly and ensuring new technical debt when appropriate. When implementing new projects, awareness of existing debt provides an opportunity to mitigate it. Adding this to the project scope allows the project team to run parallel efforts to implement a new system and address the technical debt simultaneously. Technical debt projects should be treated much like agile projects and make minimal, manageable improvements rather than a complete overhaul all at once.

Looking back to the Y2K issue many of us faced, this was an excellent example of the common-business-oriented-language (COBOL) experts addressing the problem of Y2K on legacy systems. At the same time, the rest of the organization kept moving forward on the other projects. Managing technical debt using a debt register and budget planning allows the IT department to add those additional resources temporarily to address this technical debt. One of the CIO office's responsibilities is to create a culture that understands the importance of managing technical debt and supporting efforts to address it.

Effective technical debt management is crucial for the sustainability and efficiency of government IT systems. By balancing the need to address technical debt with the imperative to implement new systems, government CIOs can ensure IT departments remain agile, secure, and capable of meeting the organization's needs. Safeguarding private and public sectors, CIOs and IT leaders must conduct regular technical debt assessments, prioritize debt management alongside new projects, and create a culture that values innovation and sustainability.