Discover the advantage of QA outsourcing: leverage global expertise, achieve cost efficiencies, and ensure software excellence.
Have you ever stopped to think about what happens in the software or applications you use every day? Software development companies are only able to offer high-quality, stable and secure products to their users due to a very important step in the Software Development Life Cycle: quality assurance.
While most people know that quality assurance is part of any good development process, you may not fully understand how complicated and important this process is in the world of software and application development.
What exactly is quality assurance?
In its most basic form, software quality assurance is the process of observing and testing software to verify that it meets necessary industry and customer standards. With the aim of improving the development and maintenance processes used during development, quality assurance helps ensure product alignment with business objectives, required specifications and compliance with regulatory requirements. There are designated software quality assurance professionals, as well as third-party quality assurance companies dedicated to this same process.
Some people tend to use the terms software testing and software quality assurance interchangeably, but they are different in terms of scope and responsibilities. Software testing is typically performed as a specific step during the development lifecycle. Software quality assurance occurs from the beginning of the planning stages to post-production of the project in maintenance mode.
Quality assurance occurs continuously during the development process to identify weaknesses and errors in an application or software product. Relevant mitigation procedures are implemented during this process, as well as after a bug or error is detected.
Quality assurance professionals provide developers with fresh insight into their projects and a fresh perspective that helps draw the development team's attention to previously undetected errors and bugs. This ensures that problems, potential failures and errors are proactively identified and resolved. Without quality assurance, your company could lose enormous amounts of money and time – as well as your reputation with customers.
The Many Benefits of Quality Assurance and Outsourcing
Your customers want the best possible services and products delivered as quickly, efficiently and cost-effectively as possible. While it is virtually impossible to provide a 100% success rate or a product completely free of bugs and errors, the only way to get close to perfection is through the quality assurance process.
This process is extremely important and benefits your company and your customers in many ways, including:
#1: Saves time and money
In scenarios where testing and quality assurance processes are not completed until the end of the project, a bug or error can mean making huge, costly fixes that extend the project timeline and go over budget. With a correct quality assurance process in place from the beginning, it is much easier to detect and fix bugs and defects during the early stages of development. This costs a lot less and takes less time to fix.
#2 Prevention
Unlike legacy software development methods, software quality assurance appears to be as preventive as possible when it comes to identifying issues related to security, performance, and functionality. Proactivity during the quality control process helps organizations eliminate the threat of failure and enables the production of intuitive, stable, and high-performance software products. Software delivery risk management also helps mitigate risks in this process.
#3 Perfect Experiences
#4 Security
Security is the most important aspect of software development for both users and the company that creates it. If your software products are not protected against the latest hacking methods, cyber threats, and more, you are leaving your company and your customers vulnerable to cybercriminals. Quality assurance helps ensure that your products are reliable, protected, and safe from the dangers that lurk on the Internet. With the average cost of a data breach reaching approximately $3.92 million, making quality control a part of every project will save your company money and reputation in the long run.
#5 Comprehensive quality
Software QA outsourcing adds many additional benefits to the overall quality assurance process. Outsourcing is typically less expensive than hiring an in-house employee. Paying an outsourcing company means paying just an hourly rate, while hiring someone in-house requires salary, insurance, payroll taxes, and many other expensive extras. Software QA outsourcing companies also give your company access to expertise that you wouldn't have on your team otherwise. If the need arises for niche skill sets or expertise in a particular technology, a professional outsourcing company can take care of these needs for your business. Outsourcing also means less overall financial expenses for your organization.
Quality assurance is a must for every development project. It reduces costs and preserves your company's reputation, while building trust with users. Software quality control ensures that the best and safest product possible is delivered into the hands of its users. Outsourcing this responsibility is even more beneficial for companies.