How the QA Testing Process Impacts Your Software Development

Today we invite you to read about one of the most important aspects of product development, which may not seem to some as valuable as actual coding, implementation of cutting-edge technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, or the latest advancements in the Internet of Things. Quality Assurance testing can play a deciding role in the success of your product, your potential revenue, the growth of your business, and your brand image. 

You may have the most talented dedicated development team in the world, working on a product that is set to potentially disrupt an entire industry and change people’s lives forever. However, without proper Quality Assurance (QA) software testing, does the product really have a chance to take off? There are plenty of examples in which a great idea failed due to poor realization, while the same idea done right became a success later.

According to Market Watch, the global Software Quality Assurance market size was valued at USD 1772.81 million in 2022 and is expected to reach USD 3989.57 million by 2028. So, there will be no shortage of talent—all you need is to know how they can help. This article will help you to gain a comprehensive understanding of the QA testing process in software product development to boost your business outcomes by improving your existing operations. 

Why and When Do You Need QA Software Testing?

QA testing process involves systematic evaluation of the various aspects of developed software before the release of the product for the users. QA testing process is conducted during and after development and is performed by qualified professionals to ensure the reliability and quality of a product. 

You need the help of a quality assurance testing company to cover the following areas:

• Ensuring that the product meets required quality standards and the specified requirements, resulting in enhanced customer satisfaction. 
• Catching and eliminating issues before the release, saving additional costs on fixing them later. 
• Identifying potential security vulnerabilities and weaknesses and preventing unauthorized access to data. In some industries, like Healthcare or Finance, there are specific security standards to follow. 
• Improving the product during the development stages and providing valuable feedback to the development team, resulting in an overall better product that can evolve during the development stages. 
• Enhancing user experience, making sure that all functions work as intended and as smoothly as possible, helping to deliver more user-friendly products. 
• Delivering a more stable and reliable product, keeping the stakeholders happy, and maintaining an outstanding brand image. 

Quality Assurance vs. Quality Control vs. Quality Testing

With the QA process explained, it’s time to clear out some common misconceptions and explain two related areas: Quality Assurance (QA) and Quality Control (QC). 

Quality Assurance is all about improving and optimizing the development process and finding weak points and opportunities for improvement. It runs with the actual development process, emphasizing the establishment of processes, standards, tools, and methodologies that contribute to the overall quality. An example of QA activities can be developing a comprehensive test plan, implementing coding standards, and conducting regular code reviews.

Quality Control is a process set up by the organization to meet quality standards and deliver the product as intended—usually, this is a reactive process focused on identifying and correcting defects in the final product. An example of Quality Control may include tracking defects and reporting them back to developers. Lacking a particular feature after the release can be considered a defect. 

Quality Testing can be considered one of the components of Quality Control, and it is a process aimed at determining whether the final product behaves as required and how it reacts to various conditions. The tester verifies and validates the product, making decisions on whether the particular test case (a specific set of conditions, inputs, actions, and expected outcomes designed to validate a particular aspect of an application or system) is passed or failed. An example of testing can be considered an execution of test cases. In one of our previous articles, we explained the difference between a test plan and a test strategy, so if you want to discover more information on testing, you are welcome to read it! 

QA software testing can be manual (where the tester executes test cases without leveraging automated testing tools) and automated (in which reviewing and validating a software product is executed with the help of automated tools and scripts). 

Each of these three elements is equally important, essential to overall software quality, and contributes to the end result greatly. 

A fine-tuned QA process in an organization will greatly decrease the workload on Quality Control and Quality Testing activities. Additionally, preventing bugs and issues during the development phase is far less expensive, compared to making changes after the release.

Key Factors in Software Quality

To this point, we already talked a lot about quality. But how do we measure it? In the IT industry, there are specific characteristics that help define the quality and help to make the QA process in software testing transparent and understandable.

Functionality

Obviously, high-quality software must function just as intended and provide capabilities and features to the fullest, just as specified in the requirements. 

Reliability

All functions must perform without any critical errors or defects. Reliable software should perform consistently and have predictable behavior under any conditions, with as low a failure rate as possible. 

Usability

In other words, ease of user interaction with the product. High-quality software is always designed to be user-friendly and intuitive and allow users to conduct actions with minimal guidance or training. 

Performance

This parameter is all about speed, responsiveness, and efficient resource utilization of software. A well-built product always performs great, has a smooth flow to it, responds quickly to user inputs, and can handle reasonable workloads without significant slowdowns. 

Security

The security aspect of software is critical in any industry. No one wants security breaches and sensitive data loss, with eventual damage to the brand’s image, company’s reputation, and revenue. Quality Assurance in software testing here is critical and must provide guarantees that everything in the project is up to the latest security standards and compliance. 

Maintainability

Another important aspect is the ease of updating, modifying, and extending it without any unintended side effects or disruptions to business processes. The product should be well-structured, built according to modern coding standards, and easily modified. 

Testability

Quality software should be built with testability in mind, allowing seamless flow in identifying defects and errors using different methodologies at any stage of development. 

Compatibility

It’s also important to make sure that the product is compatible with different operating systems, devices, and environments when it’s necessary. 

Scalability

It will be a good idea to design software with scalability in mind, making it easier to grow and be modified as the requirements of the project will change. 

Documentation

Finally, having comprehensive and well-organized documentation is very important. You should have manuals, tech guides, API documentation, and other materials that will help users and developers understand how to use it and how it works. 

The Stages of the QA Process

Let’s talk more closely about the flow of QA processes. Whether it’s mobile app testing or testing of an entire financial platform, for example, the core elements will remain the same.

Requirements Overview

The process starts with the QA team getting familiar with software requirements, drilling into its specifics and further analysis. The requirements cover functional and non-functional requirements and those contained in related documentation. The QA team should clear out the details with business representatives, managers, and developers, in case there are any ambiguities. 

Planning Activities

The next step in the Quality Assurance testing flow is to create a comprehensive QA plan, which includes:

• QA strategy
• Scope of work
• Test environments and scenarios
• Testing tools
• Roles and responsibilities of team members
• Timelines for various activities
• Risk assessment
• Test data management

The QA plan can be considered a roadmap for the testing process, helping to ensure the systematization of the entire process. 

Test Case Development

Based on the requirements and test scenarios identified during the planning stage, the test cases are created. Test cases can be considered specific steps and data inputs that QA specialists follow to determine how the software behaves and whether it meets requirements. 

Test Realization

After the creation of test cases, the actual execution in the designated test environments comes next. At this point, the QA processes may include manual or automated testing, depending on the complexity and the nature of the project. 

Verifying Corrections

During the test realization stage, the defects and the issues will be most likely identified. After those reports, developers should work on fixing issues, and QA experts should verify those corrections, making sure that problematic aspects function as intended. 

Test Cycle Closure

When all required activities are complete, the QA team analyzes the test results. They document all insights gained during the testing process to improve their future efforts, as well as provide feedback to management. 

Run Release Tests

The final stage of the flow is release tests. These tests are often part of acceptance testing and are conducted to make sure that the project is ready for deployment. The final round of tests is crucial to make sure that there are no critical issues that can damage the release. 

Exploring Different Types of Testing and Their Purposes

There are multiple types of tests that ensure the best results in QA processes, the most important include: 

Functional Testing

This is conducted to verify that everything is functioning according to specified functional requirements. The testers launch test cases based on requirements to check the behavior of software in different scenarios. 

Usability Testing

The purpose of this is to evaluate how intuitive and easy the product is for end-users to operate. The testers collect feedback from real users and identify areas for improvement. 

Performance Testing

Here, testers assess how well the software runs under such conditions as high load or the need for scalability. The main purpose is to identify bottlenecks related to speed, stability, and responsiveness. 

Security Testing

The aim here is to protect the product from unauthorized access, data breaches, and potential threats by identifying vulnerabilities and weaknesses. 

Regression Testing

The goal here is to determine that the latest code changes and system updates don’t negatively affect the existing functionality.

Integration Testing

This focuses on the interaction between different units and modules of the software, with the goal to make sure that integrated components function as expected. 

Acceptance Testing

This phase comes before the release and involves validating whether the software meets the acceptance criteria of stakeholders. 

Testing Documentation

Documentation plays a significant role in quality assurance in software testing, ensuring effective communication between experts, maintaining consistent methodologies, offering traceability of project changes, as well as serving as a knowledge retention tool. 

Key documents include:

Test Plan

A comprehensive document that outlines the general testing strategy and approach for the project, defining such elements as the scope of testing, testing objectives, timelines, deliverables, roles, responsibilities, required resources, and test environments.

Test Cases

These are the detailed instructions that specify how to perform a particular test, including such elements as test inputs, expected outputs, preconditions, and post-conditions. 

Test Scripts

A specific type of documentation for automated testing with the goal of performing repetitive tests efficiently and consistently. 

Test Reports

Finally, this type of documentation summarizes the results of all QA activities, providing valuable insight into the software’s quality and progress. 

The Benefits of Professional QA Services

The advantages and value of utilizing professional QA services for business are significant. With an expert QA team, you can be sure that the most appropriate and up-to-date QA techniques, tools, and methodologies will be used in the development of your project, leading to improved functionality, usability, performance, and security of your product.

Saving Costs

Early detection and prevention of issues will dramatically reduce spending time on fixing them after the release of the product. 

Improving Customer Satisfaction

The fine-tuned flow of QA processes will reduce or eliminate significant post-release defects, which will result in fewer customer-reported issues and higher customer satisfaction for your brand. 

Boosting Development Efficiency

Professional QA services incorporated into the development process maximize your efforts, ensuring efficient workflows. Catching bugs and issues at early development stages results in a smoother development cycle, without costly and time-consuming rework. 

Reducing Time-to-market

The accelerated development process helps to improve time-to-market as well, because the project will more likely meet the deadlines. 

Conclusion

Quality Assurance is a vital part of any software development process, securing high-quality, stable, and user-friendly products that meet customer expectations and industry standards.

If you want to learn more information about the specifics of the QA process or need help from an expert QA team, feel free to contact NIX for a consultation. Beyond QA services, we can cover the entire development process, creating complex, secure, and modern software solutions that will improve your business outcomes.