Technical Debt Records (TDRs) provide a structured approach to document technical debt within a project. Inspired by concepts such as Architecture Decision Records (ADRs), TDRs aim to make technical debt visible, manageable, and actionable by capturing its context, impact, and resolution strategies.
Technical debt is an inevitable part of software development, arising from trade-offs made to meet deadlines, reduce complexity, or prioritize other goals. However, if left unmanaged, technical debt can accumulate over time, resulting in increased maintenance costs, reduced development velocity, and a higher risk of system failure. By explicitly documenting technical debt, teams can better understand its scope, prioritize remediation efforts, and communicate its impact to stakeholders.
TDRs help teams answer critical questions:
- What is the nature of the technical debt?
- Why was it introduced?
- What are the consequences of leaving it unresolved?
- What steps are required to address it?
At AOE, we have found that documenting technical debt enhances collaboration among developers, architects, and product owners. By integrating TDRs into their existing documentation practices, teams can track debt items alongside their regular development tasks, ensuring that they remain visible and actionable. During sprint planning, teams can reference TDRs to prioritize debt remediation alongside feature development.
TDRs also serve as a valuable onboarding tool, providing new team members with insights into the project's history and the rationale behind certain decisions. This is especially helpful for long-term projects or systems with complex architectures where technical debt is an ongoing challenge.