Why software testing is increasingly being outsourced and what should businesses consider
Among other business activities, software testing (ST) is being increasingly outsourced nowadays to reduce the exorbitant expenses that are associated with it as well as to make sure that the evaluation is conducted by the best in the business. Let us get into further details. Various critical business applications are being evaluated by third party vendors these days, as each and every business is striving to cut costs. Software development and testing are highly expensive processes and involve a number of critical parameters to be attained. Testing is often plagued by software failures and other uncalled for incidents that compel huge investments to go haywire. That is the reason, ST often demands huge investments to make sure that there is enough fund for rigorous in-house evaluation of the software by the most experienced as well as trained software professionals along with an able backup process to compensate any kind of failure whatsoever.
The digitisation of modern businesses has led to increased reliance or dependency on software systems for internal as well as external business activities. This has in turn led to increased emphasis by the business houses on evaluation or testing of these software systems within the process of development. All these have collectively resulted in the increase of software testing outsourcing. A large chunk of ST centres where the projects are outsourced are located offshore – in countries like India, China or other countries in Asia. This is done after a lot of impeccable planning, taking into account the location of these countries as well as the difference in time zones wherein these countries are located. In case a company can obtain the results of evaluation over night, it effectively helps them to streamline the process of development they follow. Now let us discuss the factors that the businesses need to consider while outsourcing software testing services. Selection of Engagement Models The first factor that needs to be considered is the engagement model that a business should rely on. This is ostensibly the most crucial aspect as the entire outsourcing plan will depend upon a correct decision. The process includes a number of factors – evaluating strategies of international business, selection of a geographical location, a thorough understanding of the landscape along with deciding on the particular strategy, etc. Some of the engagement models are: Incremental Outsourcing Businesses can opt for mitigating the risks associated with outsourcing by breaking the entire project into smaller projects that are more manageable or can be outsourced to the service providers in stages. Holistic or total outsourcing In this particular model, multiple projects or programs are outsourced to a service provider who takes up the responsibility of program management as well as the delivery on the client's behalf. Mobilization The agreement includes a mobilization period for both the parties. This particular phase includes setting up of an effective communication protocol between the client and the vendor that defines breakdown structure of work, standard template sharing, setting up of test strategy, etc. This generally includes testing engineers and leads, project managers along with technical specialists. Knowledge acquisition, evaluation of infrastructure, integration with the different third party service providers are other aspects of mobilization. Whatever processes or steps are followed, every single company needs to do a lot of homework in a thorough as well as impeccable way before they opt for ST outsourcing. An able service provider will be able to effectively single out the pitfalls at the very outset. This ensures that uncalled for situations can be avoided later on while testing the software and delivering the project well within the deadline. Besides, it will also help in reducing the costs and help the companies to stick to the budget that they have initially fixed for the completion of the project in question. You can hire testers from top software testing companies in India who can help you accomplish testing within allocated budgets and time schedules. We provide software testing services. If you would like to hire certified software testers from us, we would be glad to assist you at Mindfire Solutions.
