How To Set Up Software QA Process From Scratch?

A startup company has a new idea and hires a number of developers to build a working model of the idea. After it becomes evident that the idea has been a success, the company wants to expand on the idea and starts hiring more developers, but at the same time, they also want the product to be tested before it goes out to public. Then there comes a point when the startup company decides to hire their first senior QA person to start implementing a new QA process for the development team.

Software QA process from scratch

Implementing a QA process

The aim of having a Quality Assurance process is to ensure that the right product is built right, the first time. We need to ensure that the requirements are correctly defined and the development team have a solid understanding of the functionality of new features before starting to code. Testing should support development and so testing activities are in parallel to the development activities, and at every stage of the development process we need to ensure that the code is thoroughly tested.

Regression testing

Moreover, you need to keep up with the development team to test the new features to ensure they function properly and according to specifications. A regression testing pack needs to be executed as soon as there is an update to the application, so development team can get fast feedback on the health of the application. There is not enough time to write regression tests as well as keeping up with testing of new features.

Automated testing

There is testing of new stories as well as regression testing. While it makes sense to do exploratory testing to test new features, regression tests should be automated to reduce the mundane task of repeatedly executing the same tests manually.

Deployment

A deployment in an agile project defines how a story gets from product backlog to live production site. It defines a process and the activities that happen at each stage. In order to implement a successful QA process that ensures we are frequently releasing quality code; the deployment pipeline must be defined and be adhered to by all stakeholders. The pipeline should be based on best practices and encompass the activities that occur at each stage.

Story workshops

One of the most important activities in an agile project is frequent story workshop sessions. This is important because everyone should have the same understanding of the story before starting the development work. Quality Assurance is about defect prevention rather than detection and so in the story workshops, the team get the chance to ask questions about the details of the story, any technical or design constraints and any blockers to developing the stories. Once everyone is certain on the detail and scope of each story, development starts.

Developer testing

Everyone should be responsible for quality of the product and not just testers. There needs to be sufficient amount of “developer testing” to ensure that the code written in high quality before being deployed to a test environment for further testing. A tester can help in reviewing the unit tests and well as the API tests to ensure correct tests have been written, as well as helping to write the high-level automated UI tests.

Continuous integration

In order to effectively test new features, we need to ensure the code works not only on the developer’s machine but also on other environments, and integrated with other developer’s code. Continuous Integration helps in identifying any build problems early on in the process, so that when the deployment fails, we can start to look where the issue is coming from.

Non-functional testing

We should also perform non-functional testing, such as performance, load and security testing. Quite often the focus is on ensuring the functionality works well, however non-functional testing should be given the same priority, especially for web applications as they could be subjected to heavy load or attacks. QA outsourcing allows you to focus on core business processes and improve your software features while a dedicated team handles the testing process.

Conclusion

To get comprehensive QA consulting services, it is crucially important to find a company with appropriate expertise.