Transforming Testing for Digital Transformation

BrandPost By Sandeep Johri
Nov 26, 2019
Enterprise Applications

With digital transformation, speed is the new currency. But traditional software testing can seriously hamper speed.

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Credit: metamorworks

In the application development and delivery world, the only constant is change. Today’s software testing professionals have already witnessed seismic shifts in business expectations, development methodologies, system architectures, and more. And, the new focus on digital transformation means that the rate and scope of change will only increase.

Reinventing testing is essential for achieving the speed and agility required to thrive in the digital future. Why? Speed is the new currency…but traditional software testing is the #1 enemy of speed.

The same basic story always emerges: Organizations transform Dev and Ops, but then testing cannot keep pace…and they get stuck. The testing tools and processes architected for traditional months-long release schedules simply don’t fit modern delivery cadences, which require immediate quality feedback with each new build. It’s a sad but simple fact: if you have a slow testing process standing between highly-accelerated development and operations processes, there’s just no way that you can achieve the desired delivery speed.

Many companies have already recognized this—and they’ve galvanized their digital transformation initiatives by modernizing their testing. By re-examining and re-inventing software testing across their organization, they went beyond removing the “testing bottleneck”—they’re also driving the positive user experiences that can now make or break a business. 

The Path Forward

Global 2000 organizations who want to transform testing for digital transformation with Continuous Testing—the extreme test automation required for DevOps and digital transformation—need to overcome challenges such as:

  • Highly complex application architectures (e.g., processes that cross browsers + APIs + mobile + SAP + other packaged apps + custom Java/.NET apps + mainframes…).
  • Different application types, planning cycles, development methodologies, and tools existing in parallel.
  • Deeply-ingrained quality processes across different groups and projects.
  • Scarce test automation resources.
  • “Bloated” test suites that delay the process while providing limited business value.

There is no silver bullet. Transformations take time, and they must involve all of the people, processes, and technologies associated with your application delivery pipeline. Nevertheless, you can rest assured that your efforts will pay off. These perspectives provide numerous examples of how organizations who committed to transforming testing are now growing the business and enhancing the customer/user experience.

Continuous Testing was once just an aspiration. Now, the drive towards digital transformation has made Continuous Testing a business imperative. Organizations like these are paving the path forward, demonstrating that Continuous Testing can—and must—become a reality in enterprise organizations.

Reimagining the Future of Testing

Digital transformation, cloud, AI, machine learning, RPA and the Internet of Things (IoT) are undeniably impacting the future of testing— but so are legacy systems, regulatory compliance, and security. How do we reconcile the old with the new, separate the hype from reality, and prioritize what to focus on? 

Those are just some of the questions that the 100+ page Capgemini report, Reimagine the Future of Quality Assurance, addresses. As a report contributor and sponsor, Tricentis is excited to share this report with IT leaders. The report includes:

  1. Interviews with 14 IT leaders who have driven successful quality transformations across organizations such as McDonald’s, AGL, AXA, Equifax, and Westpac.
  2. Deep dives into trends such as democratizing test data, the convergence of test automation and RPA ,and how DevOps and digital transformation are impacting quality metrics and KPIs.
  3. Sector analyses of quality trends across CPRDT (Consumer Products, Retail, Distribution, and Transportation), Energy and Utilities, Financial, Higher Education, and Government.