Is your tech estate killing your velocity?
Your teams are working harder than ever, your cloud spend is skyrocketing, yet your release velocity is at a standstill. Most leaders throw more tools or more people at the problem, but that’s just putting a bandage on a broken limb. In the latest episode of BBD’s podcast Tech Unboxed, BBD’s Tony van der Linden and Rudolph Esterhuysen reveal that while “technical debt” is often cited at the primary culprit, without a deep dive, it’s impossible to know if the issue is in the code, the culture, or the coordination. It’s time to stop guessing and start diagnosing with a data-driven Digital Health Check.
“We think of Digital Health Checks as your general practitioner or your doctor. Just a general check-up to see whether everything’s running smoothly… sometimes you have to have your blood pressure checked just to have a second opinion” explains Esterhuysen.
Quick spoilers into the episode
- The process paradox: Many leaders invest in new tools to fix slow releases, only to find the real delay is in manual handoffs and approval loops, not the technology itself
- Diagnosis with dosage: A diagnostic report is only valuable if it’s actionable. Tony and Rudolph discuss why findings must include a prioritised roadmap with cost estimates that you can execute within seven days
- The power of objectivity: Learn how independent “Red Teams” provide the neutral perspective needed to validate internal hunches and give leadership the confidence to make high-stakes pivots
The 12 pillars and the “tooling” trap
The reason bottlenecks are hard to find is that they rarely live in just one place. BBD’s Focus Framework examines twelve specific pillars to ensure nothing is missed. These pillars include strategy, people, processes and infrastructure. By looking at the “wide angle,” teams can see if a software delay is actually rooted in vendor constraints or team topology rather than just a messy codebase. A health check replaces opinions with evidence.
A recurring theme in the podcast is that organisations often hope a new tech stack will solve their velocity issues. However, the Health Check frequently reveals that operational flow; how teams communicate and move work, is the actual throttle. Because the BBD team leads with data and remains neutral, they can deliver the “difficult truths” that internal teams might be too close to see. This objectivity is what builds the trust necessary to move forward with a major transformation.
In regulated industries, alignment is everything. This isn’t a traditional, slow-moving audit; it’s a high-velocity guidance model. A senior core team drives the process, bringing in specialists in UX, Security, or Data Management for surgical deep dives where they are needed most. This ensures the findings are both deep and cohesive.
The human layer in the age of AI
Tony and Rudolph also explore how AI is accelerating the diagnostic process. While AI can compress timelines for document analysis and dependency mapping, the human layer remains the most critical component. Interpreting incentives, understanding culture, and aligning solutions to a team’s actual capacity are judgment calls that tools cannot replace.
Stop guessing, start scaling
If you’re ready to see the full picture of your tech estate and gain the confidence to move faster, this conversation is your starting point.
Listen to the full episode with Tony van der Linden and Rudolph Esterhuysen now:
