Get Instant Access
to This Blueprint

Applications icon

Build a Software Quality Assurance Program

Build a robust strategy and ensure quality is at the core of everything you do.

Given the rapid change in solution delivery over the last few years, the role of quality assurance (QA) has also evolved:

  • The widespread adoption of collaborative methodologies like Agile necessitates changes in how QA is integrated into the delivery process.
  • The maturity of automated delivery practices such as CI/CD pipelines has significantly changed how QA is conducted and enforced.
  • Industry hype is leading organizations to invest in AI to automate QA. Adopting AI can involve significant organizational changes, but current systems, processes, and roles may not be ready or able to adopt them.
  • Test requirements and scenarios are broader and more complex. Manual testing is unable to achieve the desired test coverage.

Our Advice

Critical Insight

  • The perception of QA as a cost center can lead to the diversion of QA investments to other value-added capabilities. This decision may come from leadership, development teams, or other key players who prioritize value generation over cost savings.
  • Significant focus is on the testing phase rather than the inclusion of QA practices throughout the solution delivery cycle.
  • QA teams are unable to accommodate new and evolving security risks and technologies, aggressive performance standards, constantly changing priorities, and misunderstood quality policies.
  • The marketplace for test automation and automated testing tools is crowded and difficult to navigate.

Impact and Result

  • Standardize your definition of quality. Come to an organizational agreement of what attributes define a high-quality solution. Accommodate both business and IT perspectives in your definition.
  • Clarify the role of QA throughout your solution delivery lifecycle. Indicate where and how QA is involved throughout solution delivery. Instill quality-first thinking in each stage of your pipeline to catch defects and issues early and motivate cross-functional collaboration.
  • Adopt good QA practices to better support your quality definition and business and IT environments and priorities. Ensure your QA activities satisfy your criteria for a high-quality and successful solution with the right templates, technologies, and tactics in your toolbox.

Build a Software Quality Assurance Program Research & Tools

1. Build a Software Quality Assurance Program Deck – A step-by-step document that walks you through how teams can build a robust QA strategy.

Your QA practice defines an actionable series of steps to validate and verify your products. This practice instills confidence that you have your stakeholders' needs in mind. This blueprint will help you build a foundational QA practice.

Build a Software Quality Assurance Program – Phases 1-4

2. QA Strategy Template – Defines the approaches and practices to achieve your organization’s testing objectives and product success criteria.

This document is a comprehensive description of the QA practices for your organization, with several activities required to validate and verify software solutions. It is intended to capture and convey the significant outcomes and decisions that have been made throughout the process and communicate the expectations of QA.

QA Strategy Template

3. Test Plan Template – Describes the scope, approach, resources, and schedule of intended testing activities for a specific system, product, or team.

This document identifies test items, the features to be tested, the testing tasks, who will do each task, the test environment, the test design techniques, entry and exit criteria, the rationale for the choice of tests, and any risks requiring contingency planning.

Test Plan Template

4. Test Case Template – Provides a set of conditions or variables under which a tester will determine whether a system under test satisfies requirements or works correctly.

This document specifies and communicates the specific conditions and scenarios that need to be validated and verified. The process of developing test cases can also help find problems in the requirements and design of an application.

Test Case Template

5. QA Current-State Assessment Tool – Assesses the current state of QA in your organization at team and organizational level.

This tool will help assess the current state of your QA practice in your organization and identify the gaps that should be filled to achieve your target state. This will help focus your organization's efforts in closing the gaps that represent high-value opportunities.

QA Current-State Assessment Tool

6. Sample QA Workshop Deliverable – Offers an example of the lessons and insights from an Info-Tech QA workshop.

This sample illustrates the conversations, collaboration, and consensus involved in an Info-Tech QA workshop with a government agency. This member completed a review of their current practice and a target-state design of their QA practice with various IT and business representatives.

Sample QA Workshop Deliverable

Member Testimonials

After each Info-Tech experience, we ask our members to quantify the real-time savings, monetary impact, and project improvements our research helped them achieve. See our top member experiences for this blueprint and what our clients have to say.

9.9/10

Overall Impact

$21,605

Average $ Saved

14

Average Days Saved

Client

Experience

Impact

$ Saved

Days Saved

Agriculture Financial Services Corporation

Guided Implementation

10/10

$10,000

5

This was our first call with Alex and really appreciate how prepared he was for the call. The feedback he provided on the deliverable was realisti... Read More

Heartland Co-op

Guided Implementation

10/10

$6,499

5

The best parts of my experience with Hans Eckman were: Clear customer focused conversation and topics that covered my needs and gave me more to t... Read More

Aipso

Guided Implementation

10/10

$32,499

50

They gave us good real-life examples. Good ideas - like rotating business users. Generally validated our thinking. Alex and Dawn are always gr... Read More

Cross Country Mortgage, Inc.

Guided Implementation

10/10

$34,649

16

This guided implementation was a great experience. Alex was able to help us adapt general software QA practices to our niche data team. We learne... Read More

New York City Housing Authority*

Guided Implementation

10/10

N/A

5

Hans was very informative and the follow up notes and materials very helpful. thank you!!

University of Texas - Arlington

Guided Implementation

10/10

N/A

5

The best part of the experience was the experience and knowledge the analyst brought to engagement. Also, we needed to change the direction of the... Read More

Shentel Management Company

Workshop

10/10

$44,099

20

Thinking and talking outside of the box... Conversations and discussions were all best parts of this workshop. The worst was that we weren't in... Read More

Oregon Public Utility Commission

Guided Implementation

9/10

$1,889

5

Colorado Housing And Finance Authority

Workshop

8/10

N/A

N/A

Scott and Allison were terrific and facilitated an quality workshop. The best parts of the class were : 1.) the breadth of information provided and... Read More

Westmoreland Mining LLC

Guided Implementation

9/10

$6,199

5

Omaha Public Power District

Guided Implementation

9/10

N/A

120

County of Clark Nevada

Workshop

7/10

N/A

N/A

Best parts of the workshop experience: Sharon and Scott engaged County Team members well. Collaborative and interactive question and answer sessi... Read More

Omaha Public Power District

Guided Implementation

8/10

$123K

120

Westmoreland Mining LLC

Guided Implementation

9/10

N/A

N/A

State of Ohio - Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities

Guided Implementation

10/10

N/A

N/A

The best parts of our experience were the in depth discussions about best practices and the blue print for becoming a center of excellence. The ... Read More

J.R. Simplot Company

Guided Implementation

5/10

N/A

N/A

Forsyth Technical Community College

Guided Implementation

10/10

$123K

20

The best part of this experience was hearing best practices and getting tips on how to resolve some of the pain points we experience here. I can't... Read More

Saskatchewan Blue Cross

Guided Implementation

10/10

$5,000

3

BEST: Hearing Info-Tech's view on the QA process and applying a QA practice and strategy was very helpful WORST: n/a

Texas Children's Hospital

Guided Implementation

3/10

N/A

N/A

Toyota Canada Inc

Guided Implementation

9/10

N/A

2

University of Northern British Columbia

Guided Implementation

10/10

N/A

N/A

Infotech is very supportive and provided expert level advice.

Kenan Advantage Group

Guided Implementation

8/10

N/A

N/A

Load More Testimonials

Workshop: Build a Software Quality Assurance Program

Workshops offer an easy way to accelerate your project. If you are unable to do the project yourself, and a Guided Implementation isn't enough, we offer low-cost delivery of our project workshops. We take you through every phase of your project and ensure that you have a roadmap in place to complete your project successfully.

Module 1: Assess Your QA Process

The Purpose

Reflect what QA means to your organization.

Key Benefits Achieved

Standardized definition of quality and list of metrics to track

Activities

Outputs

1.1

Define solution quality in your context.

  • Solution quality definition
1.2

State your QA objectives and metrics.

  • QA objectives
  • Metrics to gauge QA success
1.3

Assess the current state of your QA practice.

  • Understanding of the current state of your QA practice

Module 2: Align on Improved QA Practices

The Purpose

Define what would be your ideal QA.

Key Benefits Achieved

  • Understand how can QA thinking can help your organization and what QA activities will be helped
  • Defined roles and responsibilities

Activities

Outputs

2.1

Define your QA guiding principles.

  • QA guiding principles
2.2

Define your QA target state.

  • Target QA process and artifacts
  • RACI chart of QA capabilities
  • QA resource allocation approach and structure

Module 3: Build Your QA Toolbox

The Purpose

Build a solid set of testing practices.

Key Benefits Achieved

  • Defined tolerance levels
  • Defined tests, test data, and environment requirements
  • List of desired tools

Activities

Outputs

3.1

Define your defect tolerance.

  • Test defect risk tolerances
3.2

Define your tests.

  • Test definitions
3.3

State your test data and environment requirements.

  • Test data and environment management requirements
3.4

List your QA tools.

  • List of QA solutions current available in your organization
  • List of desired QA tools to be used

Module 4: Establish a QA Roadmap

The Purpose

A time-based plan that defines where your organization is, where you want to go, and how to get there.

Key Benefits Achieved

  • Prioritization of QA initiatives that will help mitigate gaps
  • How various roles will communication with each other and for each activity

Activities

Outputs

4.1

Report and communicate your QA activities.

  • List of QA initiatives and roadmap
  • Communication map
Unlock This Blueprint
Build a Software Quality Assurance Program preview picture

About Info-Tech

Info-Tech Research Group is the world’s fastest-growing information technology research and advisory company, proudly serving over 30,000 IT professionals.

We produce unbiased and highly relevant research to help CIOs and IT leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. We partner closely with IT teams to provide everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.

MEMBER RATING

9.9/10
Overall Impact

$21,605
Average $ Saved

14
Average Days Saved

After each Info-Tech experience, we ask our members to quantify the real-time savings, monetary impact, and project improvements our research helped them achieve.

Read what our members are saying

What Is a Blueprint?

A blueprint is designed to be a roadmap, containing a methodology and the tools and templates you need to solve your IT problems.

Each blueprint can be accompanied by a Guided Implementation that provides you access to our world-class analysts to help you get through the project.

Need Extra Help?
Speak With An Analyst

Get the help you need in this 4-phase advisory process. You'll receive 8 touchpoints with our researchers, all included in your membership.

Guided Implementation 1: Assess your QA process
  • Call 1: State your quality definition and list your QA objectives.
  • Call 2: Review your QA current state.

Guided Implementation 2: Align on improved QA practices
  • Call 1: Define your guiding principles and target state process.
  • Call 2: Build your QA RACI chart.

Guided Implementation 3: Build your QA toolbox
  • Call 1: Define your defect tolerance.
  • Call 2: Build your QA toolbox.

Guided Implementation 4: Establish a QA roadmap
  • Call 1: List your QA objectives and define your roadmap.
  • Call 2: Finalize your QA strategy.

Authors

Andrew Kum-Seun

Bhavya Vora

Contributors

  • Alan Page, Director of Quality for Services, Unity Technologies
  • Shannon Gould, Manager, Business Analysis and QA, Mohawk College
  • Benjamin Palacio, Information Systems Analyst, County of Placer
  • Jack Bowersox Jr., Software Quality Assurance Supervisor, Mutual Benefit Group
  • Shaunna Bossler, CTFL, Chief Quality Officer, Montana Department of Revenue, IT Division
  • 3 anonymous contributors

Related Content: Testing, Deployment & QA

Visit our Exponential IT Research Center
Over 100 analysts waiting to take your call right now: 1-519-432-3550 x2019
© Info-Tech Research Group | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy