Software Product Testing Challenges

Industry Analysts Recognize Testing Outsourcing is gaining momentum and delivers value Multiple business drivers have turned the market for outsourced testing services into a rapidly-growing multi-billion dollar business. Finding and fixing defects accounts for nearly 50% of the cost of all software development projects (© Copyright AMR Research. Offshore Remote Application Testing Can Cut Cost of Quality by Up to 75%. April 28, 2005) Software defects found in production cost four times as much to fix as defects found during Assembly testing, and two hundred times as much to fix as defects identified during requirements definition (© Copyright Gartner quoted in IP Devel white paper. Industry Trends in Outsourced Testing Services. November 25, 2005) Early defect detection saves millions; Improvements in testing could reduce the cost of defects by 1/3. (© Copyright Patricia Seybold Group. Achieving Cost Targets with Application Performance Management. February 2003) “(Testing outsourcing) is likely to gross US $1.5 billion in (India) by end of this year, and is growing at 92 percent per annum. Globally, testing is close to a US $14 billion business (over 30 percent of the US $48 billion global outsourcing market).“ (© Copyright Convergence+Plus. India - testing yard for global products. September 2, 2005)

Key Success Factors for Effectively Handling Typical Organizational Challenges Planning and Transition Phase Human Resources issues Fear of Losing Control Management philosophy & tradition…resistance to change Complex scope and structure of contracts Historically poor vendor or outsourcing relationships Challenges A shared vision Transformation Phase Clarity & Accountability –Clear agreement on scope, requirements & schedule –Responding effectively to rapidly changing requirements Transparency & Scalability –Minimizing communications and management overhead –Lead-time and overhead to adjust resource capacity Knowing how to deal with each other on a commercial footing and deal with conflict Clear objectives, including continual service improvements Solution focus with shared overall program goals, objectives, and metrics Standard methods, processes and training leading to higher productivity Trust Based Relationship Senior Management Commitment Key Success Factors Enabling…

Top Outsourced Testing Components Independent Verification & Validation –Component Testing –Integration Testing –System Testing –System Integration Testing Test Automation Test Execution Test Centers of Excellence

Trends in Test Outsourcing – where is work executed 5-10% Co-located with the client 5-10% Nearshore (same time zone) 80%+ Low cost global centers Client Site Client & Business user communication Help Desk Communication New Release and Enhancement Planning and Management User Acceptance Testing Support Offshore Test Automation Test Execution Defect Management Nearshore Application Integration Testing Defect Preventions Local 3 rd party product testing needs Process Design per Client site requests Other QA activities

Typical Testing Challenges Organizations are looking to outside experts for help with the following interrelated challenges: Testing efforts staffed with reluctant developers that view it as a “distraction” to their “real jobs” rather than testing managers with long-term testing careers Lack of Interest / Commitment Due to multiple methodologies, redundant tools, getting new resources up to speed, and onshore-only delivery approaches Excessive Costs and Inefficiencies Speed of planning, preparing tools, mobilizing resources, and conducting testing is delayed by “reinventing the wheel” and a lack of access to skilled resources Slow Speed to Market Lack of standardized processes, methodologies, tools and dedicated testing expertise causing repeat learning curves Inconsistency and Redundancy Compromised QualityInadequate emphasis placed on testing in the development life cycle ChallengeCauses and Symptoms

Typical Challenges in Outsourced Testing Effective project management and avoiding project scope creep Cultural challenges (e.g. stronger hierarchical organization in Asian countries) Difficulties in sharing software assets Distributed teams (difficult face-to-face communication) Dynamic business requirements and priorities ChallengeKey Success Factor Establishing shared development Environment. Having adequate user/system specifications and detailed project plan. One transparent risk management process for onshore and offshore team Poor knowledge transfer from onshore to offshore team Poor quality management Poor project management Rotating team members on all levels, not only executives Setting up distributed knowledge management Software development in iterations with short delivery cycles Starting small and testing the chosen service provider with a trial project Legal and intellectual property issues, Trust (e.g. handling of confidential company and customer data) Use of quality standards (e.g. CMM/CMMI, ISO 9001, ISO 20000, ISO 27001, etc) The challenges in offshore development projects can range from language barriers, poor project management, time zone differences, immature or non-standard software development processes to cultural differences