Would you ever travel on an airplane that has not flown before? Experts have not tested this plane to verify that the aircraft meets its requirements. The answer to this question would quickly be no.
Now, take that same concept and apply it to a web application or website. Comparing an airplane and a web application is equivalent to comparing an elephant to a television. The point is that the end-users feel safer and assured when the product is adequately tested and efficiently.
Many companies tend to skip out on having a product vigorously tested for reasons including cost, time, and inadequate team capabilities. This article will explore why QA is necessary and why every company needs a good testing team. I will also touch upon the pros and cons of having an in-house QA team to an outsourced team.
Table of Contents:
What is Quality Assurance and why is it important?
Quality Assurance (QA) is the process of verifying that a product or service meets specified requirements and is fit for its purpose. In other words, it ensures that customers receive a consistent and high-quality product or service.
QA is important because it helps to ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty, reduce waste and rework, and improve efficiency and competitiveness. A strong QA process is more important than ever in today's world, where businesses compete for attention online.
How quality assurance can help you scale your business
As your business grows, you will face new challenges in ensuring that your products and services meet your customers' needs. Quality assurance (QA) can help you scale your business by providing a structured approach to identifying and addressing potential quality issues.
There are many benefits to implementing a QA program, including:
Improved customer satisfaction: You can improve customer satisfaction and loyalty by identifying and addressing quality issues before they reach your customers.
Increased efficiency: A QA program can help you quickly identify and resolve issues, resulting in increased efficiency and productivity.
Reduced costs: By preventing or addressing quality issues early on, you can avoid the costs associated with rework, returns, and customer complaints.
Improved business reputation: You can improve your company’s reputation and attract new customers by providing a high-quality product or service.
If you are considering implementing a QA program, there are a few things to keep in mind:
Define your goals: What are you hoping to achieve with a QA program? Be specific and realistic in setting your goals; this will help you determine the best way to proceed.
Assess your current situation: What processes do you currently have for quality control? This will help you identify gaps that need to be addressed.
Develop a plan: Once you have defined your goals and assessed your current situation, you can develop a plan for implementing a QA program. This should include developing a team of qualified individuals, establishing quality standards, and creating procedures for testing and monitoring products and services.
Implement and monitor your program: Once your QA program is up and running, it is important to monitor its effectiveness and make changes as needed. This will help ensure that your program meets its objectives and positively impacts your business.
Quality assurance can be a valuable tool for businesses of all sizes. By taking the time to implement a QA program, you can improve the quality of your products and services, scale your business more effectively, and provide better value to your customers.
Why every company needs an actual QA team
It surprises me when I hear that a company does not have a QA team. We often read about a company that loses money due to a bug or a glitch in its software. Found bugs and glitches have happened to notable companies like NASA, Boeing, and even Microsoft. I am not saying this happened because these companies did not have a QA team. I am only using them as an example to state why it is essential to have a QA team in place for testing.
Perhaps the glitches companies have experienced in the past are due to QA missing something during their testing. Sometimes it is not preventable due to human error. However, Automation testing could safeguard against these types of issues.
Who is testing your product if not your QA experts?
But let’s pretend that a company does not have a QA team. Who does the testing then? Would it be the Project Managers? Or perhaps the Developers?
This would not be a good idea because these two types of roles are not dedicated to testing. Project Managers do just that. They manage a project. Just like Developers are focused on building the product, these two groups are too involved in multiple facets of the project.
Frequently Developers perform unit testing after completing a project or piece of software. However, because this is only one type of testing among a huge list of test types, they may not perform the necessary testing requirements that a dedicated QA tester may execute to ensure a product works perfectly.
Why you need QA specialists on your project
QA testers specialize in testing. Testers eat, breathe, and sleep testing. Most QA testers see finding issues and bugs as a rewarding experience. When a company employs a QA team, the team remains focused on the project. In contrast, the Project Manager and Developer can concentrate on their tasks.
Having QA on a project harmonizes the entire process because everyone will stick to their specialties.
Even Writers need an Editor
When authors complete their novels, they hire an editor to go through their work for any grammatical and sentence structure errors. The same concept is similar to when a developer needs someone to go through their work. The goal of the QA tester is to find flaws and bugs within the software or website.
QA also performs preventive measures with their testing to ensure that the found bugs are not reoccurring in the future. Some examples of this include automation testing and test planning.
Documenting everything in a test plan helps give visibility to the product’s efficiency and usability. Automation testing complements the tester's arsenal of QA weaponry by providing a quicker and more efficient repeatable testing method.
Having an actual QA team is not about finding issues and bugs with the software or web application. It is more for improving the overall quality of the product. QA will find the critical bugs and issues, but at the same time, the overall quality of the product will improve. The company with the tested product will be able to stand behind its work.
In-house QA team VS outsourced testing: which one is the best for your web project?
A dynamic QA team throughout the processes ensures that testing is done properly. When considering the options and choices to opt for an in-house or outsourced QA team, there are many things to consider.
Some companies that decide to have a QA team may outsource the product to an outside testing team or vendor.
Here is a list of pros and cons for both options:
In-house QA team
Pros of having an in-house QA team:
The QA team is more familiar with the product, overall team, and company culture.
You can tailor your QA team to the specific needs of your business.
You have more control over the testing process, timelines, and results because the team is in-house and under your direct supervision.
In-house QA teams are generally more affordable than outsourcing testing to a third-party provider.
If needed in an emergency, the QA team will respond immediately without additional monetary compensation.
The QA team shows more dedication to the company's overall success and not just the project.
In-house QA teams tend to be more cost-effective in the long run.
Cons of having an in-house QA team:
An in-house team can be more expensive to set up and maintain than an outsourced testing solution due to hiring and training specialized personnel.
In-house QA teams can be less flexible than outsourced providers.
The QA team may be too junior to take on additional responsibilities
Familiarity with the project and application may cause missed issues.
The ability of the team to adapt to changing technologies may be stagnant.
Outsourced QA team
The advantages of an outsourced QA team:
The QA team brings a wide range of experience to the project.
Outsourced testing providers usually have a larger pool of testers to choose from, so you can find the perfect match for your needs.
Outsourced teams can be more flexible and scalable than in-house QA teams, as you can easily adjust the size and scope of your project.
Because of the unfamiliarity with the company and project, the QA team will have a fresh approach and method of testing.
The QA team will only focus on the project, avoiding other distractions.
The cons of having an outsourced QA team:
The QA team can be more expensive than an in-house QA team on a per-project basis. And it may even be too expensive for the current project, especially if there are delays or unforeseen show-stopping issues.
During emergencies, the team may not be available to help due to timing and budget constraints.
You may have less control over the testing process as you work with a third-party provider.
When working with an outsourced QA team, you may need to invest additional time and resources into training them on your product. Indeed, depending on the project's complexity, the QA team may need additional onboarding resources and time, leading to higher monetary and timing costs.
Having a QA team is important, but using the best tool for the project is essential. UIlicious is ideal for creating automation test scripts that do not involve having extensive knowledge of complex code-based languages. The UIlicious QA Automation team has successfully provided consulting services to customers and clients such as Daimler, JLL, and SirionLabs. Plus, using UIlicious means having the best customer support team available. Our team is here to help answer your questions, including your test scripts. Other automation tools either have no customer support, or the support is automated.
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Creating a successful quality assurance process is not an easy task. It requires careful planning and execution. However, there are a few key steps that all businesses should take:
Define your quality standards: What are your expectations for your products or services? What do your customers expect? Be specific and realistic when setting your quality standards.
Establish a testing process: Once you know your quality standards, you need to establish a process for testing products or services to ensure that they meet these standards. This process should be detailed and well-documented.
Train your team: It's important to train your team on the testing process and quality standards. This will ensure they can accurately identify errors and report them to the appropriate people.
Implement quality control measures: Once you have a testing process in place, you need to implement quality control measures to prevent errors from occurring in the first place. This may include design reviews, code reviews, and process audits.
Monitor your process: Even the best quality assurance processes can be improved. It's important to monitor your process regularly and make changes as needed.
Have a plan for dealing with defects: No matter how well you plan and execute your quality assurance process, there will always be some defects that slip through the cracks. It's important to have a plan for dealing with these defects. This may include re-testing, redesigning, or scrapping the product altogether.
Common mistakes made in regards to quality assurance
Quality assurance is important for any business because it helps to ensure that the product or service is up to par with industry standards and customer expectations. Without a QA team, you're putting your business at risk of poor reviews, low customer satisfaction, and lost revenue.
There are a few common mistakes that businesses make when it comes to quality assurance:
Not Having a Dedicated QA Team
The first mistake is not having a dedicated QA team. Many businesses think that they can save money by having one or two employees handle quality assurance, but this is a false economy. Having a dedicated QA team ensures that your product is consistently high-quality. It also shows your customers that you're serious about quality.
Not Testing for All Possible Scenarios
The second mistake is not testing for all possible scenarios. Many businesses only test their product in ideal conditions, but this doesn't give you an accurate picture of how your product will perform in the real world. Make sure to put your product through various tests, including stress tests, to ensure it can handle whatever issues arise.
Not Having a Standardized Testing Process
The third mistake is not having a standardized testing process. This can lead to inconsistency in the quality of your product, as different testers may have different standards. A clear and concise testing process that everyone follows will help ensure that your product is always of the highest quality.
Not Listening to Feedback
The fourth mistake is not listening to feedback. Your QA team should constantly collect customer feedback and use it to improve your product's quality. Ignoring feedback means you're missing out on valuable information that could help to make your product better.
Not Acting on Defects
The fifth mistake is not acting on defects. Once a defect is found, it's important to take action to fix it as soon as possible. Ignoring defects can lead to larger problems down the line, so address them as soon as they're found.
Technology is constantly evolving, and companies need to stay one step ahead. A strong, dedicated QA team is essential to tackle challenges and issues. I hope this article provides insights into why every company and team needs a QA team.
