When to leverage Test consultancy Services?

As the demand for faster, smoother and better business processes are growing, the computing systems that support business environments are becoming complex. The developments are accompanied by more complicated test requirements.

In certain situations, the test efforts encounter delays and impact release because of inadequate infrastructure and insufficient competency. That is when collaborations withtest specialists are sought. This blog identifies some of the scenarios where an organization needs the external support when it comes to software testing.

Frequent upgrades to the business environment

The increasing deployment of mobile applications across verticals, the rise of Big Data initiatives and the diversity of device/technology landscape is compelling enterprises to upgrade various components of the IT systems.

Since upgrades present new scenarios, enterprises are compelled to strengthen the testing initiatives with greater coverage, improved visibility and real time reporting. Very often, the internal infrastructure and resources are not conducive to meet test requirement.

A cost benefit advantage with test expertise without the burden of investments would be an ideal solution. Test consultancy offers flexibility and a wider test service portfolio. 

Limitations of Test Automation

Automated Testing comes with a set of limitations which can only be overcome by human intervention.  Moreover, since Test Automation covers a larger test scope with acceleration, it is paramount to customize it to meet the evolving business environment.

Longer Test cycles

Testing the IT system is consuming more time, efforts and costs.  While, in-house test departments tend to shadow the development, the lifecycles take longer time and often lead to rework.

Independent Software Testing companies consolidate a broader test engineering expertise and help enterprises make the IT system and applications more testable and thereby create a large window for improving quality.

Underutilization/ Redundancy of test infrastructure

Investments in test infrastructure, tool licences and partnerships need to be powered by testing specialist to gain maximum advantage.

With Colocated Test Advisory services, your enterprise can leverage the possibilities of using the existing investments in multiple releases and integrate with tool agnostic frameworks that improve test coverage.

Higher post production defect density

Post production defect density is a major concern for a business organization since it influences the risk perception and risk mitigation response. A higher density rings alarm bells among the stakeholders and might even alter the course of the initiatives.

Having a colocated Test Advisory team shadow the development enables the organization to focus on core business and development while the testing team implements a strategy to ensure lower defect density.

Migration to new platforms and ERP systems

Migration is a critical area for any organization transforming to newer and better way of achieving business objectives. Incidentally, this process is defect prone and often leads to a long journey of rework as and when the inconsistencies begin to appear.

Software Testing is very crucial during migration not only to ensure defect detection but also to accelerate the process with visible reports on the source, location and impact of the defect. 

Mobile Testing is much more than Testing

Mobile is not a device. It is a phenomenon which brings people together in interactions which have just begun to unfold the true potential of connectivity.  This phenomenon explains the enormous innovations that are being powered by and thereby empowering Mobile testing.

 

Mobility is the new business space which is free of the constraints of the user’s location and time zone.  But any initiative in this space is influenced by the Operating systems, platforms, device configurations, versions, network carriers. This is the reason why it is essential to test the performance, security, compatibility and functionality of the initiatives.

 

UI is not just a business requirement. It is a USP and deal clincher. It is a focal point of the entire business process. A lot of complication is required to make UI simple. The complications include input output validations.

 

User is more than just a person interacting with the organization. A user may be a marketing professional, member of the organization, a telecommuting professional with authorized access or a customer. A user provides the common sense that determines the requirements for any mobile initiative.  Thus, it pays to have a testing approach that is user friendly. This approach will save a lot of post release surprises.

 

The Organization is not just a space or an integrated workplace. An organization is the way it is extended in the mobile space while the interactions are seamlessly navigated towards the organization and managed flawlessly. Software Testing makes a difference when it incorporates all the mobile interfaces and the internal process that enable an organization’s operations.

 

Application is not just a tool. It is a process in itself and it speaks volumes about the organization’s competency and attention to the needs of the customers or users. That is why certain ‘avoidable’ defects in the application indicate inconsistencies in the processes.

 

Cloud is not just a flexible solution. It is a strategic advantage. With cost benefit, remote access and globally distributed services, Cloud is an opportunity as well as a challenge. Needless to say any cloud initiative demands meticulous testing and comprehensive coverage.

 

Upgrades are not inevitable; they are exponential leaps of innovation and business growth. Resistance to upgrades or delays are known to have caused substantial losses to well established institutions. On the other hand, hasty upgrades with insufficient testing are known to have damaged reputations in addition to financial losses. This makes Regression testing an undeniable business driver for any mobile initiative.

When the context is so mobile, the development and testing are expected to be inseparable to meet the time and quality requirements. Colocated SoftwareTesting brings the capabilities of development and the scrutiny of the testing partner to one workstation and catalyzes Software Quality with digital accuracy and human intellect.

How Colocation Transforms Functional Testing

How colocation transforms Functional Testing? It integrates testing into the business environment, leverages wider test capabilities, and reduces time and space between defect detection, reporting and retesting.

Function is the most critical part of an application/software. It is the outcome of a meticulous integration of a lot of inputs ranging from business objectives, market research to strategic communication which enables smoother transactions and digital interactions.

The scope of innovation and the business potential from functionality have made it one of the most important business drivers in an IT driven global economy. This makes functional testing an equally if not more important part of the business strategy.

It takes more than a conventional testing approach to build applications that help enterprises connect the stakeholders, execute business processes and capture the market. As a diverse set of test requirements are emerging, enterprises have begun to realize the importance of colocated functional testing.

Input output validations against the specifications are evolving into new patterns under the influence of smart phones, applications, data, usage and users. Needless to say, it is crucial to have external and independent functional testing across the SDLC.

As usability testing and regression testing requirements are compelling enterprises to build larger test scopes that address business logic as well as the computing environment, colocation testing is turning out to be ideal solution. When the business logic and the critical part of the applications are at stake, it makes great business sense to leverage colocated functional testing expertise.

For a comprehensive coverage, it is important to find new ways to assess the control flow, data flow, path flow, statement coverage, boundary value analysis and partitioning. The assessments would not be of much help if the reports are of poor quality. Hence, business environment specific reports which communicate the test status to the stakeholders are as important as the test scripts.

What colocation offers is the cross vertical expertise of testing specialists and the infrastructure and tool licenses required to implement the test strategy. Operating in the same work environment reduces the scope of ambiguities in communication while eliminating the difference in the time zones. Moreover, the complementary testing knowledge also helps the enterprise leverage the overall test capabilities of the testing enterprise through the colocated model of engagement.

With a pay as you go and requirement oriented model of engagement, organizations no longer need to invest in tools, resources and infrastructure that go redundant over time. But it is important to evaluate the collaboration to ensure the ‘right fit’ of resources for your organization.

Because functional testing shows what your system does, the testing strategy has to be aligned to the business outcomes that are expected. To accomplish this, enterprises need to have access to a wider resource pool of career testers out of which the most appropriate combination of skill sets and test experience can be leveraged to match the business environment.

How to achieve the balance between quality and time while Upgrading HP’s QC and ALM ?

Upgrades are the strategic business decisions that can address existing as well as emerging requirements. HP’s presence in the global technology landscape makes its products, formidable business components. Asset management and cross project asset sharing with HP’sQC and ALM is an essential step for organizations to ensure faster and more effective processes.

Since the new business environments are experience increasing convergence, it is essential to have an enterprise view, team orientation, optimum resource utilization, effective delivery cycle, minimum down time and strategic stakeholder participation.

HP Application Lifecycle Management (HP ALM) is a set of software products designed for accelerating the delivery of secure, reliable modern applications. It is a combination of a common platform, several key applications and a dashboard targeted at managing the core lifecycle of applications.

The benefits are compellingly obvious. QC incorporates requirements, business process testing, agile testing, automated testing, enterprise synchronization, test and defect management. On the other hand the ALM encompasses Project Planning and Tracking, Application Lifecycle Intelligence, Lab Management Automation, Asset Sharing and Re-use, Cross-project Reporting, HP Enterprise Collaboration, HP Performance Center, Quality Assurance, Requirements Definition and Management, HP Fortify Security and Multi-environment Support.

Businesses choose one of the two upgrade path options available to them – Direct Upgrade & Phased upgrade, based on the number of projects, infrastructure, downtimes and priority.  The options include Upgrade QC 9.2 directly to ALM 11, Upgrade <QC 9.2 to QC 9.2 or 10 and then to ALM 11, Quality Centre Enterprise 9.2 or 10 upgrades to Quality Centre Enterprise 11 and Quality Centre Premier 10 upgrades to ALM 11.

For a company with lesser number of projects and consistent schema and infrastructure, the Direct Upgrade is an ideal option. This path has a higher server downtime. For larger business environments which need to maintain the operations of the legacy systems during Migrationof HP QC 9.2 to HP QC ALM 11, the Phased Upgrade is an ideal solution because it is compatible with the sandbox infrastructure and can be made live upon incorporation of the required processes.

To accomplish these upgrades, enterprises need to assess the Infrastructure and tool integration, define upgrade criteria along with validation rules, downtimes, determine the upgrade approach with the backup specifications and the upgrade workflow with sandbox and upload models.

For definite alignment with the business environment and optimum benefit from the migration, the enterprises need to validate upgrade and data, end user validation, track issues raised and Restore from backup in case of issues and recognize the updated issues.