In software development, technical debt (also known as design debt) is the implied cost of additional rework caused by choosing an easy (limited) solution now instead of using a better approach that would take longer.
If technical debt is not repaid, it can accumulate “interest”, making it harder to implement changes.
Unaddressed technical debt:
- Increases the likelihood of unexpected errors and solution defects.
- Increases the cost of future rework.
- Decreases product quality.
Robert Pieper, Scrum.org Professional Scrum Trainer explains the problems technical debt causes and how can teams remove it.