IT Glossary
What is a backlog?
The ordered list of everything the team still intends to do on a software product — permanently open, permanently prioritised.
Every living software project has a wish list longer than its budget, and the backlog is the civilised form of that list: all the features, improvements and repairs anyone wants, written down in small pieces and ranked by value with the most important at the top. Each working period is fed from that top; whatever sits near the bottom waits, negotiably, until next month or forever. For you as the client this is the primary instrument of financial control. Instead of signing up front for a hundred features of which forty will never be used, you pay for delivery in order of value and you can stop when the product is good enough. A healthy backlog is also a test of your supplier. If they cannot show you at any moment what is coming next, in what order and why, the project is being steered from memory and phone calls, which is to say it is steering itself and you are paying for wherever it ends up.
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Why it matters for your business
The company's priorities, not the tech team's
You set the order by business value while the team estimates effort — together that produces the best value-per-euro at each stage of delivery.
The budget stops gracefully
When money or time runs out, what has been delivered is the most valuable material — not half of everything, which is what unprioritised projects produce.
No idea gets lost
Requests from around the company enter the list and wait their turn to be ranked, which ends the pattern of raising something in a meeting and never hearing of it again.
Frequently asked questions
Who decides the order of items in the backlog?
The client, directly or through a product owner. The development team informs the decision with costs and technical dependencies, but you are the one who knows the business value. A supplier who prioritises their own backlog is spending your money against their criteria.
What is the difference between the backlog and the bug list?
Bugs are one type of backlog item alongside new features and improvements. They all compete for the same team hours and are therefore prioritised together — a minor cosmetic bug can wait quite happily behind a feature that brings in revenue.
Is a very long backlog a bad sign?
Not necessarily; it is normal for it to contain more than will ever be built. The bad sign is a neglected backlog where nobody can tell what is still relevant. Its hygiene is periodic review and the courage to delete what no longer matters.
Let’s talk about your project
Message us on WhatsApp or send an email — you talk directly to a developer.
office@northdan.com · +40 752 070 247