“Legacy” code is often treated as a problem to avoid.
In reality, every long-lived codebase becomes legacy. The question is not whether tech debt exists, but how deliberately it is managed.
Tech debt accumulates when codebases are not treated as systems that require ongoing maintenance. At the implementation level, this typically shows up as:
- outdated dependencies
- missing or brittle tests
- poor design patterns
- poor observability and health checks
- delayed upgrades to supported platforms or frameworks
Left unattended, these reduce development speed and increase delivery risk.
Why Tech Debt Matters
A simple analogy works here:
you can cut a tree faster with a sharp axe than with a blunt one.
Teams working on poorly maintained systems spend more time compensating for friction — slower builds, fragile deployments, unexpected regressions. Over time, this directly impacts predictability and morale.
How Engineering Managers Influence Tech Debt
The EM’s role is not to fix tech debt personally, but to shape how the team approaches maintenance.
One effective approach is to build a culture of continuous maintenance:
- reserve a small portion of each sprint for improvements
- treat maintenance work as planned, scoped tasks
- prioritize it after sprint goals, not instead of them
This is similar to gardening: small, regular effort prevents large cleanups later. Attempting to “fix everything” in one dedicated window often fails due to unclear scope and competing priorities.
A continuous approach works better because:
- maintenance tasks are refined and bounded
- engineers understand limits before starting
- work gets completed instead of deferred
Where This Shows Up in Practice
- Automate what you can: dependency update bots, CI checks, static analysis
- Keep tech debt visible in planning and refinement
- Use EM and Tech Lead collaboration: EMs provide outside perspective, Tech Leads drive execution
- Monitor the maintenance-to-feature ratio — enough to stay healthy, not so much that delivery stalls
Tech debt management is like going to the gym: consistency matters more than intensity. The goal is system health, not perfection.
The Takeaway
Tech debt is unavoidable. Neglect is optional.
Approaching tech debt as continuous maintenance keeps systems healthy and delivery predictable — without slowing the business down.
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