Disposable IT vs Composable IT: Finding the Right Balance

In modern enterprise IT, we face a fascinating dichotomy: the need for quick, disposable solutions versus the desire for reusable, composable systems. However, our idealization of composability often leads us astray from what truly matters - delivering business value.

Rethinking Technical Debt

Before diving into the dichotomy, we need to address a fundamental misunderstanding in our industry: the concept of technical debt. True technical debt, like financial debt, requires two specific conditions:

1. Something has been committed to
2. That something is not yet done

The key word here is commitment. Yes, if you've committed to a specific target architecture, anything that doesn't conform to that architecture represents debt. However, we often misuse the term by applying it to any solution that doesn't match our ideal architectural principles. This misuse ignores a crucial reality: different architectural styles and patterns naturally conflict with each other, and optimizing for a specific target architecture isn't always what's best for business.

The Composability Fairytale

Composable IT, while appealing, often represents a fairytale in modern enterprise. It's frequently championed by IT specialists who either don't understand or prioritize their technical preferences over business needs. As IT professionals, we're all susceptible to this bias - we want our lives to be easier. This mindset might have made sense when software was expensive and slow to build, but not anymore. In today's world, creating software is remarkably cheap and growing ever-faster, as it should with rapidly evolving business needs. Our focus should shift toward theory building and creating more composable data architecture, recognizing that source code itself is increasingly disposable.

The Rise of Disposable IT

The concept of disposable IT has gained traction due to several factors:

• Dramatically reduced cost of custom software development
• Increased pressure for rapid business value delivery
• Growing availability of low-code/no-code platforms
• Need for quick experimentation and validation
• The emergence of powerful AI development tools

Benefits of Disposable IT

The rise of AI-powered development tools has fundamentally changed the economics and skills landscape of software development. With AI handling much of the routine coding tasks, the truly critical skills now lie in higher-level design aspects: infrastructure architecture, data modeling, and business functionality design. This shift makes disposable IT more viable than ever, offering several key benefits:

1. Speed to Market: Rapid development and deployment, accelerated by AI tools
2. Business Focus: Direct alignment with immediate needs, with more time to focus on business design rather than implementation details
3. Low Initial Investment: Reduced upfront costs, especially with AI handling routine development tasks
4. Easy Replacement: No long-term maintenance commitment, allowing focus on evolving business needs
5. Enhanced Design Focus: Resources can be redirected from routine coding to critical design decisions in infrastructure, data, and business functionality

The Traditional Case for Composable IT

While we should be skeptical of over-emphasizing composability, there are still valid scenarios where composable IT makes sense:

• Reusable components and services for truly common patterns
• Standardized interfaces and protocols where integration is critical
• Long-term maintainability for generic business systems (think payroll, HR, billing)
• Enterprise-wide consistency in critical areas

Finding the Right Balance

Decision Framework

Consider these factors when choosing between approaches:

• Business Criticality: How essential is the function?
• Time Sensitivity: How urgent is the need?
• Expected Lifespan: How long will it be needed?
• Integration Requirements: How connected must it be?

Hybrid Implementation Strategies

Successful organizations often employ a hybrid approach:

1. Use disposable solutions for rapid prototyping
2. Identify patterns in successful disposable tools
3. Gradually evolve critical solutions into composable components only when justified by business needs
4. Maintain clear boundaries between approaches

Implementation Guidelines

For Disposable IT

• Set clear expiration criteria
• Document minimal but sufficient information
• Use isolated environments
• Plan for eventual replacement
• Focus on high-level design decisions over implementation details
• Leverage AI tools for routine development tasks

For Composable IT

• Only design for reusability when there's clear business value
• Focus on data architecture over code reusability
• Maintain thorough documentation
• Regularly validate the business case for composability

Monitoring and Metrics

Track the success of both approaches using:

• Time to market metrics
• Development and maintenance costs
• User satisfaction scores
• Business value delivered
• Actual reuse statistics vs. projected benefits

Conclusion

The choice between disposable and composable IT isn't just about technical architecture—it's about understanding that IT exists to enable business operations and innovation. The rise of AI development tools has shifted the balance further toward disposable IT by handling routine implementation tasks, allowing organizations to focus on what truly matters: infrastructure design, data modeling, and business functionality. While composability has its place, we must resist the urge to over-architect solutions in pursuit of a technical ideal. Sometimes, the most business-appropriate solution is a disposable one, and that's perfectly fine. The key is to focus on business value delivery while maintaining a pragmatic, rather than idealistic, approach to architecture.