Product Guardian Role and Socio-Technical Debt Management in Large-Scale Agile

Large-scale agile (LSA) development presents challenges in effectively integrating technical expertise. Prior research reported a range of challenges in LSA, however, specific mechanisms and roles for ensuring technical quality remain underexplored. This qualitative case study investigates specialized ‘Product Guardian’ role within LSA context, examining its responsibilities, challenges, and impact on product quality. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with software professionals and analyzed using thematic analysis. We identified four primary themes: perceived necessity and value proposition of Product Guardian role; core responsibilities associated with the role, ensuring effective development by bridging technical and product perspectives; challenges faced by individuals fulfilling this role. Additionally common impediments within LSA teams that Product Guardian interacts with or mitigates. Our findings suggest that Product Guardian role can be instrumental in enhancing product quality by proactively addressing socio-technical debt in LSA projects. This study provides practical insights for organizations that customizing roles focused on technical integration can be a viable strategy to overcome challenges to product quality in LSA development.