Upon initial review of our Azure DevOps technical debt backlog, it became evident that we face a pivotal challenge in our pursuit of QUALITY and INNOVATION. Dealing with the seemingly impossible can be daunting for any DevOps product team. Similar to financial debt, addressing technical debt demands a well-defined strategy and commitment to implementation, leaving no space for compromise or excuses.
To commence your technical debt remediation journey, consider the following steps:
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Embrace the Reality and acknowledge the Problem - Collaborate with your product owner, stakeholders, and team to establish a clear strategy for tackling technical debt head-on.
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Draw the Line and distinguish Bugs from Technical Debt - Explore why bugs should not be mistaken for technical debt in the discussion on Why Bugs are NOT Technical Debt.
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Continuously Categorize Technical Debt - Organize your technical debt into categories like Architectural, Automation, Billing, Code, Design, End-of-Life (EoL), External Component, Infrastructure, Operational, Product, Security, and Test.
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Continuously Prioritize Technical Debt - Focus on addressing the most critical and valuable issues first to prevent compounding interest, leveraging an experienced panel or working group to collaboratively prioritize tasks. Should you tackle end-of-life software or known vulnerabilities first, considering their potential impact on tomorrow's headlines or the return on investment?
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Continuously Track Technical Debt - Routinely review and archive technical debt that has lingered for over a year or two, keeping it accessible for reference but out of public view. If your product and users have tolerated it for this long, its impact is likely minimal. We have adopted a similar strategy for shelving "would-be-cool" features from cluttering our product backlog.
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Invest in Automated Solutions - Empower your engineers with automation tools to detect, comprehend, and mitigate technical debt efficiently. Consider initiatives like our AI Software Sentinel experiments, paving the way for proactive identification and resolution of potential issues through artificial intelligence.
How are you dealing effectively with your technical debt?