What if we told you that the best way to save costs without sacrificing quality is to invest in the quality of your developments? You might think we’re crazy but keep reading to find out how this is the best way to achieve your goal. And we can already tell you that it doesn’t mean spending more, but rather spending wisely.
Quality: A Long-Term Investment
At LedaMC, we like to think of quality as the shield of the ship that protects and ensures that software development processes are designed to help produce the product efficiently. While quality may seem costly, it will always end up costing more not to invest in it. Did you know that studies show that fixing an error in production is 10 to 100 times more expensive than detecting it in the early stages of requirements, design, or implementation?
Imagine the development of software products as the construction of a house. We could decide to cut costs on materials and hire cheaper, less qualified labour, thinking we’ll fix any problems that arise later. We’re not considering that these choices will likely affect the construction time: the inexperienced crew makes mistakes that require constant corrections, and many defects will appear even before the house is delivered due to poor materials.
And over time, once completed and already inhabited, these choices will translate into many more repairs that accumulate, as do the costs of fixing them—just like a software application launched to the market with many defects.
The Cost of Managing Technical Debt
Here we encounter the term Technical Debt. This concept is used in development to define the cost of maintaining and fixing poorly built software, whether due to Time to Market pressure, not having a well-defined quality model, etc. As a result, we have a product already launched with errors and interruptions in its operation that developers must fix, dedicating part of their workday to repairing rather than developing.
These inherited problems can also complicate or even prevent the development of new features, hindering the evolution of the software product.
A 2021 study by Stepsize of over 200 developers, project managers, and CTOs revealed that developers spend about 6 hours a week solving issues related to technical debt. That is, almost a workday per week in which they do not develop new features, in addition to the impact this has on team morale and productivity. As you can see, the costs of poor-quality management will only grow in the future.
Quality: The Essential Pillar of Software Development
So, how can we ensure that our software product is of high quality? First, we must understand that quality is a broad and theoretical concept but essential in software development. It encompasses the entire development lifecycle, from planning to implementation and maintenance, focusing on the overall process and how each stage contributes to the final outcome. Meanwhile, testing focuses on specific aspects of the product, such as error detection and functionality validation.
Let’s go back to our example of house construction:
- Quality: When planning the construction of a house, quality refers to how you define the construction standards, the processes you will follow, and the procedures to ensure that each stage is done correctly. This includes selecting materials, architectural design, and managing time and resources. It is a holistic approach that ensures the house is not only beautiful but also safe and durable.
- Testing: These would be the specific inspections at different moments of the construction to ensure that each component of the house, like the electrical installation or plumbing, works correctly and meets the defined standards. It is a practical verification that everything is in order before the house becomes habitable.
How Do We Link These Two Concepts? The answer is a good methodological framework, essential to guide the quality of our development processes. This framework is theoretical and focuses on planning and organizing the activities needed to maintain high quality in software development. It acts as a detailed blueprint, defining the necessary standards, processes, and procedures. Without this framework, testing will not benefit from a clear definition of quality.
The Integration of Quality and Testing: Quality Governance
Quality Governance is the effective integration of quality principles and testing practices. It’s like having a construction supervisor who not only reviews every aspect of the work but also ensures that all workers follow the defined standards and procedures. This supervisor coordinates inspections (testing) and ensures that each project phase is executed as planned (quality).
In software development, this means we must have a system where process quality is directly linked to testing activities, including:
- Establishing the Quality Governance Model: Setting all the guidelines, from defining what we consider quality, to methodology, types of tests, KPIs to monitor, etc.
- Sharing Our Quality Model: Ensuring that everyone involved understands and follows the established procedures. A good definition of our model is useless if we don’t communicate it correctly to the stakeholders.
- A Well-Designed Test Plan: Defining the necessary tests according to the functionality being designed, delivery time, and development methodology. And, of course, following the guidelines of our Quality Model.
Remember, quality software development requires a comprehensive approach that combines theoretical standards and concrete practices. Investing in quality from the start not only prevents future problems and costs, but also ensures that your final product meets user expectations and is competitive in the market.
In upcoming articles, we’ll discuss how to assess the maturity of our testing process. You won’t want to miss them.
And in the meantime, if you also want to achieve balance in your Quality and Testing Model, we can help! Contact us!
