Full article originally published by DOTMed Healthcare Business News on October 15, 2024.

Technical debt—the idea that IT systems are owed updates because teams “borrowed” against long-term quality in service of short-term workability—is on the rise. A 2024 report from Forrester found that 79% of IT decision leaders in the U.S. face at least moderate levels of technical debt, which makes sense, given the speed at which technological change is accelerating. However, it also makes the need to respond to technical debt even more urgent.

Addressing technical debt early is crucial because the debt compounds at a very high interest rate. The first few band-aids that provide a quick solution to a deeper problem may look like they are helping, but when a system accrues 2,000 band-aids, it slows innovation to a crawl. It’s nearly impossible to improve or change a module when it’s unclear what the repercussions will be as a result. When a new tool is added on, as a fix for one problem, it results in additional technical debt in another area, band-aid 2,001.

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