World Quality Report: Quality Assurance can be turned into Quality Engineering

Over the past few years, companies have had to develop their IT solutions at a rapid pace. “

Digital solutions were subject to new pressures. The speed and release of digital solutions increased at an exponential rate. Contract iterations meant that more complex QA work was required earlier than usual.

This raised existential questions for QA team members: How can they adapt to shorter iteration times? In light of the pandemic and all secondary instability (supply chain disruptions, inflation, skilled-resource shortfall, potential recession),

These are the questions that were investigated by the World Quality Report (2022-23), the 14th edition Sogeti’s (parte of Capgemini’s) annual report.

A Short History of Quality Assurance from Guilds to Sustainable IT

The origins of QA go back to the Middle Ages when master craftsmen established guilds so they could evaluate each other’s work. QA began as a slow and deliberate process that focused on the absolute quality the craft.

The Industrial Revolution was the catalyst for the modern conception and practice of QA.

Quality Assurance (QA) is usually done at the end or the beginning of a manufacturing cycle.

The development-to-test framework is carried forward into the software-development processes. QA is responsible for testing software products. After they are developed, they pass them to QA teams to perform various types of testing.

According to the WQR, the development-to-test framework may be in danger.

The report states that “The transformation of the QA function, from pure testing to actual quality-engineering practices, is. . . are essential for companies to remain successful in their domain.”

Just like FinOps made software developers responsible to manage costs and operations, The emergence of quality engineers has seen the development of people who are responsible for implementing quality controls that take place throughout the software-development lifecycle (SDLC) and not after it.

The Industrial Revolution combined the seemingly opposing demands of speed and quality. The WQR claims that the Digital Revolution is fusing these once disparate functions. As new paradigms such as sustainable IT emerge, software quality will also be affected.

6 Pillars for Transitioning from Quality Assurance To Quality Engineering

Sogeti compiled this year’s WQR from responses from 1,750 respondents in 32 countries, 10 industries, seven respondent groups. This report provides an in-depth look at the state of QA and six key pillars that organizations can use to transition to quality engineering (QE) this year.

1. Orchestration

Using the right quality protocol at the right stage of development is key to success in QE. According to WQR, agile organizations have reduced their time to market by 65% and increased software quality by 56%. This has resulted in a 61% improvement in customer experience.

2. Automation

End-to-end automation is what organizations should strive for. This means reducing manual testing and planning. When developing automated systems, organizations should be more concerned with the customer and process benefits rather than immediate revenue impact.

3. Technology

A number of cutting-edge technologies will help facilitate the transition from QA to quality assurance (QE) according to the report. Each team will need to create its own QE strategy

4. Provisioning

The report stresses the importance of cloud testing and automated data provisioning. It encourages organizations to try out open-source, off-the shelf, hybrid, and other options for cloud testing and then to choose a agile software development tools based on its efficacy.

5. Metrics

According to the report, true QE is dependent on metrics that serve as “holistic quality indicator across the development lifecycle.” Organizations should create universal quality metrics that can be used early in the SDLC and tracked throughout.

6. Skills

People are the driving force behind the transition to QE.

The Future of Quality Engineering

The WQR looks beyond the current pressures and identifies emerging trends that QE departments will need to address. It also highlights future trends that QE teams should consider. A particular focus is on sustainable IT, value stream management, (VSM), .

Sustainable IT is the development of software that is environmentally sustainable.

VSM refers to the practice of applying value-checks to each stage in the SDLC. According to the WQR, 60% of organizations use the VSM approach for every development project.

Organizations need to be more innovative in their approach to quality. Keeping up with emerging technologies, such as cybersecurity and blockchain development, VSM, and will ensure success.