Tech debt is a product problem.
Debt slows every feature and raises the risk of every release. That makes it a trade-off for product, not a hobby for engineers.
Deliberate
A Conscious Shortcut
“We'll fix it after launch.”
OK when: there's a plan to repay it
Risk: “after launch” never comes
Accidental
We Learned Better
“We'd design it differently now.”
OK when: it's blocking real work
Risk: endless rewrites
Bit rot
The World Moved On
“That framework is out of support.”
OK when: never; it only grows
Risk: security and outages
Debt has interest. Pay it on purpose.