The hidden cost of "move fast and break things"

The "move fast and break things" mantra sounds great in theory. It works fine for a five-person startup, but it's a disaster for established organizations trying to balance innovation with stability.

I learned this lesson the hard way at a previous company. We adopted the "move fast" philosophy, pushing new features weekly without proper testing or considering downstream impacts. Sure, we were shipping code quickly, but we also created technical debt faster than we could handle it.

Here's what many technology leaders miss when embracing speed above all else:

• Technical debt compounds silently until it explodes. That quick fix you implemented six months ago? It's now blocking three major initiatives.

• Team burnout increases as developers constantly context-switch between new features and fixing rushed implementations.

• Customer trust erodes when they become your de facto QA team

Instead of "move fast and break things," consider the following approach.

Move Deliberately and Fix Root Causes

1. Set Clear Boundaries: Define what can be rushed (minor UI tweaks) versus what needs thorough evaluation (payment processing changes). Create these guidelines with your team.

2. Implement Cool-Down Periods: Schedule time specifically for cleanup and refinement after every major push. This isn't optional. It's part of your delivery process.

3. Track Technical Debt Like Financial Debt: Create a "debt register" that quantifies the cost of quick fixes. Review it monthly with stakeholders to make informed decisions about paying it down.

Here's what this looked like in practice.

At one organization, we started tracking technical debt in financial terms. Every rushed implementation had an estimated "interest rate"—the increasing cost of fixing it later. This simple change helped our business stakeholders understand why sometimes slower is faster.

The results? Within six months, our production incidents dropped by 60%; developer satisfaction scores improved, and, most importantly, our actual delivery speed increased because we weren't constantly fighting fires from previous rushed deployments.

For senior leaders reading this: Your technology teams want to move quickly and deliver value. But they need your support in creating sustainable practices. Next time you're tempted to rush a project, ask yourself: "What's the real cost of this shortcut?"

This isn't about becoming slow. It's about being strategic with speed. In my experience, organizations that truly move fast take the time to build proper foundations.

What shortcuts in your organization are slowing you down?

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