It's interesting to observe the attitude of senior management towards the software testing teams requirements to purchase and implement software testing tools. Nobody ever seems to question the development team when they request development tools that they need to purchase to carry out their jobs effectively. After all it's usually easy to see the productivity of the development team increase when they implement the right tools. Whether that's automated build systems, desktop IDE applications, source code control tools, the development team can usually put forward a strong business case for the purchase and implementation of core development tools. The request to purchase and implement these types of tools is accepted without question.
Test teams have it much tougher when it comes to convincing the management team to spend money on necessary items for their department. Getting an adequate portion of the budget allocated to these types of tools is always more difficult to do. One reason this is true is because the benefits are not as readily obvious. The developers can show tangible benefits through improved productivity. The additional features are easy to point out when the project is finished.
For the software testing team the benefits are less tangible. The argument going something like; if we can implement a test automation tool we can run more tests and quality will improve. Here we have the concept of quality which is hard to quantify and thus difficult to use as a basis for building a sound business case. In many cases though the business case can be easier to construct if you start out thinking about the benefits and likely cost savings to the company. For example if you have to load test a product before release you have some simple logic which can be applied to the business case which makes the purchase of a load testing tool quite compelling.
The alternative to using a specialized testing program is depending on end users to conduct a load test. It would take approximately 100 testers to test effectively. Specially designed software will be much more efficient and take much less time. No one is likely to think about getting 100 people to test load their application but it does illustrate the cost savings associated with purchasing a suitable program instead.
Most people do not understand why regression testing is necessary, let alone important. They do not automatically realize how critical tests are to maintaining quality. Without a good explanation for the need for regression testing, it is difficult to realize the need for an adequate automation tool. This is amplified by the fact that this type of software has a reputation for being flawed or ineffective. The options must be researched thoroughly or the cost will be wasted and the program will do nothing more than collect dust. This will make it even more difficult to get funding the next time it is needed.
Regardless of what the development team needs, the testers have to do what they can to prove their worth. Ultimately they are the ones that are familiar with the benefits associated with being able to test properly and efficiently. Company owners need to understand the importance of keeping the test team supplied with whatever they need to properly do the job they are hired to do. And that means implementing the right software testing tools.
About the Author:
An outlay for software testing methods and tools may save a business effort and time when implementing new software programming. You can learn more about the benefits of testing at http://www.softwaretesting.net .
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