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Technical Debt Management Strategies

1 post · Feb 2023

What this trail covers

Shopify has evolved its strategies for managing and reducing technical debt within its engineering organization. This includes categorizing debt into Yearly, Monthly, Weekly, and Daily types, and implementing the '25 Percent Rule' to allocate engineering time: 10% for Daily Debt (improving code encountered during regular work), 10% for Weekly Debt (addressing smaller issues identified as separate tasks), and 5% for Monthly/Yearly Debt (intellectual work on planning and prioritization). The focus is on fostering a culture that encourages refactoring and continuous improvement.

All Shopify trails
  1. The 25 Percent Rule for Tackling Technical Debt - ShopifyThis post introduces and details the '25 Percent Rule' as a framework for managing technical debt. It categorizes debt into Yearly, Monthly, Weekly, and Daily types, and proposes specific time allocations for each: 10% for Daily Debt (improving code encountered during regular work), 10% for Weekly Debt (adding cards/issues to sprints), and 5% for Monthly/Yearly Debt (planning and prioritization meetings). The post emphasizes that Daily Debt improvement should focus on code already being worked on, not actively searching for 'bad code'. It also highlights the cultural shift required to encourage refactoring and recognize its value.