Why Legacy Code Is Everyone’s Problem: Wouter Lagerweij on Product & Engineering Ownership

The Mob Mentality Show

👨‍💻 Legacy code isn’t just old untested code—it’s a symptom of deeper problems in your organization. In this no-fluff episode of the Mob Mentality Show, we’re joined by Agile and technical coach Wouter Lagerweij to break down why legacy issues persist and how shared responsibility between product and engineering is the key to meaningful change.
🎯 What we cover in this episode:
- Why legacy systems are just as much about organizational baggage as they are about outdated code
- How true Agile teaming—swarming, pairing, mobbing—can unlock speed, learning, and fun
- Why your bug tracker is a graveyard, and how a zero bug policy can reset your team’s quality bar
This is a grounded, experience-rich conversation packed with practical insights for developers, team leads, product managers, and anyone serious about improving delivery without adding more process theater.
✅ You’ll come away with:
* A broader definition of legacy and how to confront it
* Concrete examples of effective team collaboration models
* A new perspective on software quality and defect tracking
* Proven ways to foster stronger cross-functional ownership
👤 **About the guest:**
Wouter Lagerweij is an independent Agile Coach based in The Netherlands and operating throughout Europe. He loves spending time with teams and organizations to figure out how to improve the way they make software, and make it more fun. To make that happen he uses the knowledge and skills gathered in over eighteen years of experience applying Agile processes and practices from XP, Scrum, Kanban, Continuous Delivery, DevOps, Lean and Systems Thinking. To turn those improvements into real business opportunities, he has added Lean Startup/Lean Enterprise approaches. Occasionally, he even uses common sense. 😅
Video and Show Notes: https://youtu.be/me9CSgmIRk8