Understanding and Managing Technical Debt: Lessons from Azure DevOps | Martin Hinshelwood

👋 Hi, I’m Martin Hinshelwood from NKD Agility  , and in this video, I break down the concept of technical debt, how it affects your team’s ability to deliver value, and why paying it back is essential. Using real-world examples, including insights from the Azure DevOps team, I’ll show you how managing technical debt can transform your product development process and unlock long-term productivity gains.

📌 Chapters:

1. 00:00 – Introduction: What is Technical Debt?
2. 02:30 – Known vs. Unknown Technical Debt
3. 05:15 – Examples of Technical Debt in Action
4. 08:45 – The Cost of Unpaid Technical Debt
5. 12:00 – Lessons from Azure DevOps: Paying Back Technical Debt
6. 16:30 – How Shorter Feedback Loops Drive Long-Term Value
7. 20:00 – Strategies for Managing and Prioritizing Technical Debt

🎯 Who This Video is For:

• Product teams struggling with legacy systems and inefficiencies
• Developers and engineers looking to understand the impact of technical debt
• Engineering leaders focused on balancing feature delivery and system sustainability
• Organizations aiming to improve productivity and deliver more value

📖 What You’ll Learn:

• The definition of technical debt and how it accumulates (known and unknown)
• Real-world examples of technical debt from Azure DevOps and beyond
• Why technical debt isn’t just a cost—it’s a barrier to delivering value
• How paying back technical debt shortens feedback loops and increases productivity
• Practical strategies for managing technical debt effectively

💡 Key Takeaways:

• Technical debt is future work caused by prioritizing speed over long-term solutions.
• Known and unknown technical debt must be addressed to ensure product sustainability.
• Paying back technical debt doesn’t just improve quality; it enables teams to deliver more features faster.
• Shortening feedback loops through disciplined management of technical debt unlocks exponential value.

At NKD Agility  , we help teams identify, manage, and pay back technical debt to create slick, sustainable systems that maximize value delivery. Ready to turn your technical debt into an opportunity for growth? Visit us today and let’s start building better software together.

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