subject: 6 Reasons Why Companies Should Have Software Qa And Testing Services [print this page] When a layman talks about IT; in his mind he is talking about software development, management and handling of the hardware components or at most the database, Enterprise resource planning or networking issues that he, as a common man, might have experienced first or second hand. What people normally forget is, at times, the most crucial stage between the actual development of a software and its usage by an end user; the Software Quality Assurance and Testing Services.
An error or a fault is a human action which not only produces incorrect results but is also inevitable. It occurs because no one is perfect or free of human error and because even those among us, who are known for perfection, can make an error merely because they work under pressures of time and cost constraints. Therefore, whether or not a company has a QA person or team can define the long term success or failure of the same.
I suggest a list of 6 compelling reasons as to why companies should have software quality assurance and testing services and why those who do always stand a bigger chance to outshine those who do not.
Reduced Risk
As the old clich goes Precaution is better than Cure, so is the case in every matter including software development and testing. Software development is an investment of skill, time and cost whose benefits are realized by the success of its outcome like every other investment. What software quality assurance and testing does is that it reduces the degree of risk, of this investment going bad, to a great extent.
The developers must always ensure that the newly developed products fulfill all of their performance, usability, security, compatibility and functional requirements under normal as well as increased load and across various platforms. The need to do so has been high lightened by the increased expectations and demands of todays customer.
Winning Customers Trust
Customers trust the vendors who provide good quality. These vendors are dependable, reliable and if important enough, can help The companys success says something about the quality of vendors they hire. Every organization with its eye on outstanding success would trust a vendor if and only if they provide certified and trustable business solutions. Without conducting software quality assurance and testing activities no vendor could safely claim to have made a defect free product. Having one, on the other hand can vastly improve your chances of making and subsequently proving such a claim. the organization in determining their competitive advantage. For instance if it wasnt for the highly efficient and integrated ERP systems working in Wal-Mart, it might not have been half as successful as it is today.
Greater ROI
A greater success or a lesser failure rate does not only help in reducing costs in terms of wasted resources but also insures greater revenue attributed to the increased Quality that the tested and verified services promise. Having a double end affect like that, it shows direct implications on your companys profits and the Return on Investment.
Consistency
Software testing and Quality Assurance allows you a stronger control over the outcome of your efforts. If you test every project before it enters the markets in your name; chances are that your performance would be a lot more consistent than it otherwise could be.
Consistency is crucial to winning your customers trust as well as in creating a sustainable competitive advantage in a perfectly competitive market.
Stronger Brand Equity
Having enjoyed all the benefits stated above, a company can positively hope to have a stronger market presence in terms of a brand which has not only been able to create salience but is also resonant with its target market.
A brand that has a good track record of successful projects, whose customers trust it, that earns a good return on its investments, holds a competitive advantage against its counterparts in the market and performs consistently well throughout; is bound to have a soaring brand equity.
Source of Competitive Advantage
To wrap up; from a business strategic view point; Software Quality Assurance and testing services can be a major source of a companys competitive advantage.
The advantages that Ive discussed can all work together in giving a certain company or brand a reliable position against its probable target market members.
Porters view of product differentiation has everything to do with why I recommend that every company should have software quality assurance and testing services.
Nothing can beat the high, consistent and dependable quality such practice promises to create.