Technical Debt: The Silent Enemy That Can Stop Your Business
Is your organization ready for the future? If your organization has outdated and obsolete systems, the answer is probably no!
Technical debt is a silent but extremely dangerous problem that can lead to high costs, jeopardize information security, and compromise your organization’s competitiveness. Each day that passes without addressing this debt, the company is missing out on innovation opportunities and risking its reputation in an increasingly cyber-threatened environment.
In fact, up to 40% of the technological portfolio value of large companies may be related to technical debt, with 41% of IT budgets being allocated to solve it. This represents resources that could be used for innovation but are instead allocated to maintaining obsolete systems.
In this scenario, acting proactively is not just a matter of efficiency – it’s a strategic necessity. Effective technical debt management not only improves the performance of your systems but also protects your data and reduces unnecessary costs that drain your resources.
The Dangers of Ignoring Technical Debt
Companies that do not strategically address their technical debt are accumulating risks, from increasing operational costs to critical security vulnerabilities. Here are some of the main impacts:
- Security at risk: Outdated systems are an easy target for hackers, exposing sensitive data and leading to financial and reputational losses. Companies face an average of 1,168 threats per week due to vulnerable legacy infrastructures.
- Hidden costs: Maintaining old platforms costs much more than investing in modernization. The maintenance of legacy systems consumes valuable resources that could be used for innovation. It is estimated that companies waste between 23% and 42% of development time dealing with issues caused by technical debt.
- Loss of competitiveness: Companies that do not address technical debt fall behind, unable to respond quickly to market changes. 69% of IT leaders consider technical debt a fundamental obstacle to innovation.
The Approach to Solving Technical Debt
To effectively solve technical debt, it is essential to adopt a structured approach that includes several phases, all focused on cost reduction, improving security, and operational efficiency:
1. Initial Assessment: The first phase is a detailed evaluation of all company systems and applications. This involves mapping dependencies, identifying vulnerabilities, and calculating the maintenance costs of outdated systems. The goal is to prioritize the systems that most impact the company’s security and efficiency.
2. Transformation Plan: Based on the assessment, a strategic plan is created to modernize or replace obsolete systems. Some applications may be migrated to the cloud, while others need to be restructured or eliminated.
3. Migration and Implementation: The migration of systems is carried out in an agile manner, minimizing disruptions to daily operations. Each step is validated to ensure the integrity and security of the data.
4. Continuous Management and Optimization: After implementation, it is essential to continuously monitor the technological environment, optimizing it to ensure the company remains secure, efficient, and compliant with regulations.
How CHRLY Can Help
We know that many companies do not have the time or dedicated resources to effectively deal with technical debt. This is where CHRLY comes in. Through its squad model, CHRLY assembles a dedicated team to exclusively handle your company’s technical debt.
While your focus remains on business growth and innovation, our highly qualified squad takes on the responsibility of modernizing, transforming, and optimizing your technological systems, ensuring that technical debt does not become an obstacle to your progress. The squad model offers flexibility and agility, allowing for a quick response to client needs and ensuring that each project is handled with maximum efficiency.
Discover how CHRLY’s squad model can elevate your IT projects to new levels of efficiency, agility, and innovation: CHRLY – Elevate Your IT Projects.
Online resources
Article Sources: McKinsey, “A new standard to measure and tame technical debt” – McKinsey & Company – https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/mckinsey-digital/our-insights/demystifying-digital-dark-matter-a-new-standard-to-tame-technical-debt
Wavestone, “Technical Debt: What is the true cost?” – Wavestone – https://www.wavestone.com/en/insight/technical_debt/
Business Wire, “Study Reveals Majority of IT Leaders Consider Technical Debt One of the Biggest Threats to Innovation” – Business Wire https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210615005115/en/Study-Reveals-Majority-of-IT-Leaders-Consider-Technical-Debt-One-of-the-Biggest-Threats-to-Innovation-as-They-Build-Back
Pluralsight, “Technical Debt Poses a Cybersecurity Risk” – Pluralsight https://www.pluralsight.com/blog/it-ops/technical-debt-poses-cybersecurity-risk