How software quality assurance helps make technology dependable
In times of crisis, uncertainty often becomes the greatest challenge, overshadowing even the immediate issues at hand. This has been especially true during the recent global disruptions where questions about the future have created widespread anxiety. Amid this turmoil, the need for reliable and dependable technology has never been more apparent. Technology has become the backbone that supports continued communication, business operations, remote work, and virtual education, allowing society to maintain a semblance of normalcy.
Digital technology has enabled the world to function with remarkable continuity, even as traditional routines and business priorities have undergone significant shifts. The global lockdowns showcased how technology can keep us connected, sustain business operations, facilitate remote work, and support virtual education. Healthcare workers, too, have relied on technological advancements to manage patient care efficiently and effectively, despite unprecedented pressures.
Forrester’s recent report, “Design for Dependability by Embracing a Future of Trusted Technology,” emphasizes the importance of designing technology services with reliability and resilience in mind. According to the report, dependability is defined as the probability that a service will perform its intended function over a specified interval under stated conditions. This concept of dependability is crucial as it underscores how well technology services can withstand a variety of real-world conditions.
So, how do we ensure that technology remains dependable? The answer lies in rigorous software testing and quality assurance. According to the Consortium for IT Software Quality (CISQ), poor software quality cost U.S. companies approximately $2.84 trillion in 2018 due to operational failures and defects. By implementing comprehensive quality assurance practices, we can mitigate uncertainties and build technology that users can rely on, even in the most challenging times.
Read on to explore the seven key elements of dependability and how they are integral to creating robust and trustworthy technology services.
How Software Testing and Quality Assurance Strengthen the Seven Pillars of Dependability
- Availability — forming the baseline of dependability:
Contrary to popular belief, availability and dependability are not synonymous. While availability is crucial, dependability encompasses resilience to various constraints over time. According to Forrester, dependable services and infrastructure exhibit high availability, but true dependability ensures consistent performance under diverse conditions.
Software availability testing involves running applications for extended periods to detect failures and assess repair times against initial requirements. This data helps bridge gaps between expected and actual uptime, ensuring maximum availability in real-world scenarios.
2. Capacity — to serve during all lean and busy moments:
During global lockdowns, digital platforms like Microsoft Teams and Zoom experienced unprecedented user surges, highlighting the need for scalable services. Load testing plays a pivotal role in determining an application’s maximum capacity, including response times, throughput rates, and resource utilization under peak conditions.
Combined with cloud testing, load testing enables proactive measures to prevent service disruptions during sudden spikes in demand, ensuring uninterrupted service delivery.
3. Performance — to ensure that services meet desired levels:
Performance metrics encompass responsiveness, scalability, and availability. End-to-end performance engineering provides comprehensive analysis and recommendations for enhancing application flexibility and benchmarking stress and endurance thresholds.
Businesses leverage performance testing to optimize service delivery, maintain high responsiveness, and meet stringent performance expectations in competitive markets.
4. Simplicity — of operations for day zero and beyond:
Dependability necessitates balancing development speed with operational simplicity amidst complex API integrations and large-scale architectures. Monolithic applications pose challenges in maintenance and repair, potentially damaging service provider reputations.
Microservices architecture offers a solution by breaking down complex applications into manageable units. Multi-tier testing, including unit, integration, component, contract, and end-to-end testing, ensures robustness and operational simplicity in handling extensive software applications.
5. Consolidation — of all operations:
DevOps and Agile methodologies promote collaboration and innovation by breaking down organizational silos. This cultural shift enhances code quality, responsiveness to change, and overall operational scale.
Agile practices enable organizations to achieve stability while accelerating time-to-market, fostering an environment where software development aligns with business objectives and enhances operational consolidation.
6.Costs — of technology services that can’t grow linearly with availability levels:
Traditional tightly coupled applications are costly to operate and resistant to change, leading to potential failures. Microservices architecture offers a cost-effective alternative by enabling modular, loosely coupled services.
Each microservice independently manages functional and non-functional aspects, facilitating efficient service delivery and cost control without compromising scalability or reliability.
7. Trust — of customers that you’ll deliver services securely:
With the shift to digital life, customer trust hinges on secure service delivery. Security testing and penetration testing are critical in uncovering vulnerabilities and mitigating risks associated with remote work environments and cloud adoption.
Ensuring data privacy and security across digital channels builds customer confidence and strengthens organizational trustworthiness, reinforcing the foundation of dependable service delivery.
Conclusion:
Testrig Technologies is a leading independent software testing company, specializing in quality engineering and software testing solutions for next-generation enterprises globally. Our team of experienced quality assurance professionals possesses a deep, end-to-end understanding of the challenges enterprises face during digital transformation.
With industry-leading software testing methodologies and Testing Centers of Excellence, we are committed to ensuring your software applications achieve high dependability in today’s uncertain environment. Whether it’s enhancing availability, optimizing performance, or fortifying security, our comprehensive approach to quality assurance guarantees robust and reliable software solutions.
Partner with Testrig Technologies to discuss your challenges and discover how our tailored software testing services can empower your organization. Contact us today to start a conversation about making your technology services more dependable.
