Overview
• QA defined for purposes of discussion • Traditional challenges for QA
• ―Value‖ of QA based on a Company’s Size and Type
– Review of Industry Standards of Tester per Developer Ratios
• Trends in QA
– What QA Managers and Staff do to add value – QA vendors and Tools
Quality Assurance Defined
• Quality assurance, or QA for short, is the systematic monitoring and evaluation of
the various aspects of a project, service or facility to maximize the probability that
minimum standards of quality are being attained by the production process. QA cannot absolutely guarantee the
Question for the Group
• Which one of our SCQAA members wrote this definition for Wikipedia?
(ice-breaker – attempt at QA humor – insert laugh tracks)
Serious Note – I will discuss later how this managerial courage from QA is a value add for CIOs
QA as an IT function
• Generally thought of as Software Quality Assurance (SQA)
– Commonly understood as part of SDLC
– Considered a requirement for Level 2 (Repeatable) of Capability Maturity Model (CMM)
• Includes any technology related testing falls under the IT QA function
– Examples include: Stress testing of corporate website; Smoke testing of the enterprise after a change to the environment
• Traditional QC, History, Deming principles, etc.. Out of Scope for the presentation and discussion
Traditional challenges for QA
• Hard to Quantify the ROI
– What is the ―value‖ of found bugs? How much did we save by not have X defect go to production?
– Nearly impossible to quantify hypothetical “What If” scenarios
• Testing takes TIME and delays releases
– Testing is the first thing that gets short changed when invariable development delays occur
• Software testing as a Function and as a Career Path isn’t as visible as other parts of the SDLC
– There are few specific university degrees focused on it
41% of respondents see SQA as a nice-to-have or
―Value‖ of QA based on a
Company’s Size and Type
• How QA is viewed varies significantly on the size and the type of company
• Maturity of an organization’s IT function
has even more to determine the value that is derived from QA
– GMAC (Ditech) and The Irvine Company – Paragon, All-Safe Pool Safety, Northwood
Development Type
Average Best in Class Lagging
ISV 1:3 1:1 1:5 Web/E-commerce 1:3 1:1 1:5 Enterprise Custom Development 1:5 1:3 1:10 Departmental Custom Development 1:10 1:3 1:20 Package Implementation 1:10 1:3 1:15
Industry Standards of Tester per Developer Ratios
Tester per Developer Ratios
Analysis
• Spending on testing and quality is driven by the perceived risk involved
– Software companies know the value of software — it is their business so they invest more in testing resources
• New technologies, government regulations and competitive advantage factor in the level of
risk/investment
• Does this matrix and ratios hold true for your organizations?
What does this mean for you?
• Seek out organizations that are have lower ratios from this chart: example - mature
software vendors, large shops OR
• Recognize the opportunity from the laggards to bring in your expertise and to be flexible,
Trends in QA and a Value Driven
Approach
• QA is getting involved early in the development process
– QA can validate if requirements can be ―testable‖
– More relevant concept with the proliferation of Agile vis-a-vie Evolutionary Prototyping
Trends in QA and a Value Driven
Approach
• QA is getting involved early in the development process
– QA can wear many hats and be able function in an analyst role or even demonstrate subject matter expertise
– Develop communication skills
– Be able to work with the customers
– Demonstrate knowledge of the business to gain credibility with stakeholders
Trends in QA and a Value Driven
Approach
• Regarding Credibility…
– QA needs to be regarded as a pillar of objectivity
– QA adds value by being an independent voice – QA Managers/Leaders need to present
objective testing results but also offer their interpretation to the state of a project
– Leadership requires management courage CIOs rely on you to give it to them straight
Trends in QA and a Value Driven
Approach
• Regarding Credibility…examples
– Very evident in highly regulated organizations – Government Contractors
– Medical/Bio/Pharma
– Edwards Life Sciences – has a small
corporate QA department 5 and large 40+ QA department that is mandated to R&D projects
QA Team of the future
• CIOs need to build a balanced team • The future QA team is more than just
testers looking for bugs
• The future team is multidisciplined team that is closely integrated with the project, development and operations function of the IT group
QA Team of the future
• Career Path Example
– Junior Tester – Senior Tester
– Software Test Engineer
– Software Performance Analyst – Test Architect
Trends in QA
Tools/Vendors
• New script-free and model-driven testing environments
• Tools for testing "in the cloud"
• Tools are more supportive of Agile
– leading tool support integration between software requirements and test plans
New Opportunity for QA
• CIOs are open to new tools that address the traditional challenges
• New tools offer a new opportunity for QA to educate IT Leadership and the business community
• Promotes the trends of Agile so QA can be more into the process
Questions?
• Thank you for your attention and the
opportunity to present to you this evening
