The importance of quality assurance is vital in software development in the context of twin transition, a concept that refers to the process of simultaneous transition to digitization and sustainability within companies and society in general. In this process, software becomes an essential tool for managing and optimizing business processes while meeting sustainability goals, and the quality of software products is not just an expectation but an essential requirement for business success. Quality assurance testing has a fascinating history, beginning with simple checks on traded products in ancient times and evolving into an integral part of our digital world today.
The Evolution of Quality Assurance
Quality assurance has a fascinating history. Since the days when stones were used to build civilizations, artisans carefully checked the fit of each stone before setting it in place. In terms of products, the principles of modern quality assurance arose with the guilds of the Middle Ages, also formed to establish a quality standard dictated by monarchs for certain trades, such as blacksmithing.
With the Industrial Revolution, the modern ideology of ensuring the quality of products created in factories began. This was due to the methods of Frederick Winslow Taylor, an American mechanical engineer whose ideas led to methods of efficiency and productivity in factories, including training employees, implementing and strictly enforcing documentation and protocol based on scientific studies, and distributing work in a way equally between workers and managers. This philosophy became known as scientific management, advanced by Walter Shewhart, a quality expert at Bell Labs, who in the 1930s introduced the use of plan-do-study-act (PDSA) in the development process.
After World War II, it was W. Edwards Deming who realized that there was a conflict between hard work and smart work. Instead of working harder to produce more, Deming felt that his quality assurance methods would reduce workload and thereby save money and time by analyzing and documenting all aspects of the development process. In short, PDSA led to iterative and incremental development (IID), which in sequence led to the Agile software development processes we see today.
First Steps in Quality Assurance in Software Development
The first documented example in software development was by the project team of Mike Dyer, Bob McHenry, and Don O’Neill at IBM, using Iterative and Incremental Development (IID) to create the command and control system of the US’s first Trident submarine. This spawned two different methodologies: Waterfall, focused on documentation and code refinement, and Agile, based on rapid sprints, as in the case of the Trident submarine command console.
A fascinating story is that of Grace Murray Hopper, a pioneer in computer science. In 1945, at Harvard University, his team ran into trouble with a bug that created chaos, the first reference to a “computer bug,” a term coined by Hopper that is significant in the parlance of the IT industry. Hopper also contributed to the development of the COBOL programming language, establishing fundamental rules that are still used today by test engineers around the world.
Other important names are Joseph Juran, who emphasized the importance of continuous testing in quality control in his 1951 Quality Control Manual, influencing modern practices such as Agile, and Glenford J. Myers, who brought clarity to testing terminology and methodologies with his 1979 book, The Art of Software Testing.
Finally, we come to test automation tools, with Selenium establishing itself as one of the most popular and effective test automation tools, highlighting the continued importance of investment in quality and constant improvement of software development processes.
Independence in quality assurance in a growing global market
Quality assurance is a smart investment for companies that pays for itself by identifying risks, saving money and keeping users happy, and partnerships between software development and quality assurance companies are becoming crucial to obtain high quality products that meet users’ requirements and expectations.
According to the study “Software Testing and QA Services Market Size and Share Analysis – Growth Trends and Forecast (2023 – 2032)”, the global testing and QA services market was valued at USD 38.48 billion in 2023 and is estimated to reach over USD 90 billion by 2030, with CAGR of 13% during this period. The largest market is North America with a share of over 40% in 2022, followed by Europe with a share of over 25% in the same year.
The study “Global Software Quality Assurance Industry Research Report 2023, Competitive Landscape, Market Size, Regional Status and Prospect” shows that the global software testing market is experiencing significant growth in demand and is on an upward trajectory. Projections show that this growth will continue over the long term, with the CAGR estimated this time at 21.77%.
Even with more pessimistic forecasts, these figures reflect growing demand for quality assurance and software testing services as companies face increased pressure to deliver high-quality, reliable and secure products. In an era where technology is rapidly evolving and innovations are the order of the day, proper software testing becomes crucial to an organization’s success and competitiveness in the marketplace.
With such significant market expansion, software testing service providers and automated testing tool providers are expected to experience a substantial increase in demand for their products and services. This market growth provides significant opportunities for innovation and development, as well as for expanding product and service offerings to meet increasingly complex customer needs.
Green eDIH and BetterQA, partnership for sustainability
In a world where the environment is increasingly fragile and the need for sustainable solutions is becoming increasingly urgent, the green industry relies heavily on digital technology to innovate and streamline processes. From optimizing production processes to monitoring and efficiently managing resources, software plays a critical role in the digital transformation of the green industry.
Quality assurance and software testing thus become fundamental pillars in this process. The software used in the green industry must be reliable, accurate and secure to ensure the correct functioning of the systems and to avoid negative impacts on the environment or risks to human health. It is also essential that this software is tailored to the specific needs of the green industry, provides advanced monitoring and reporting functionality, and can be integrated with other systems and technologies used in the field.
In the context of the services offered by Green eDIH to its partners, special attention is paid to quality assurance, which not only minimizes the risks and costs associated with subsequent errors or failures, but also ensures a smooth and efficient transition to a sustainable digital future. At the same time, BetterQA is currently a leader in the field of software testing, recognized for its high quality standards and commitment to customers, team skills and approach oriented towards building long-term relationships.
Among the company’s outstanding achievements is its recent approval as an official service provider by the NATO Communications and Information Agency, a significant step towards global recognition and compliance with the highest standards of quality assurance in software development and the ability to it meets the rigorous requirements of international projects, a major objective of the Green eDIH ecosystem .
BetterQA is distinguished by a unique and valuable approach: independence in quality assurance, a principle that not only defines the way of operation, but is also the key through which it provides added value to customers. By separating the QA team from the development team, BetterQA ensures that quality assessment of software products is performed without any conflict of interest. This allows defects to be precisely identified and addressed, regardless of their origin or nature.
Independence is not just a slogan for BetterQA ; it’s a philosophy embedded in the services offered, from ensuring objective testing to providing detailed and useful reports.
The partnership between Green eDIH and BetterQA represents a strategic step, integrating quality assurance directly into the structure of digital projects from the very beginning, to minimize risks and increase sustainability in technological development by providing companies engaged in digital transformation processes with correct operation, security and reliability the most innovative solutions, in any industry.
