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The development of software and systems is a complex task that involves social, technical and organisational factors. Technical debt is a well-known concept that refers to the negative consequences of taking shortcuts in software development. However, organisational debt (OD) is a less well-known phenomenon that arises due to shortcuts in the organisational structure and processes of a software organisation. The lack of a clearly defined OD makes it difficult to identify and manage this type of debt. This study presents a multi-vocabulary literature review that consolidates an understanding of the nature of OD and its impact on software organisations. OD encompasses a set of attributes, precedents and outcomes. In addition, this study highlights the five causes and mitigation strategies of OD. The results of this study indicate that software companies are facing a major issue with OD. Future research should include empirical studies to validate techniques that can assist software professionals in managing OD to address this issue.
Ahmad et al. (Mon,) studied this question.