Introduction

I have been working in software projects for over 15 years and many times people ask me, “What does your job entail?”. I usually answer something like this:
"Each time we use an electronic device, a mobile application or a software program for a certain purpose or need, we want it to work properly, the way it was designed. That’s what a QA verifies".

I want to explain the main purpose of QA and the impact and benefits that such role brings to a software project.

What is “QA”?

A software project follows different methodologies and processes to carry it out. Such processes are done by people; however, there can be unexpected situations like:

• Unclear requirements.

• Different conceptions or interpretations from the team.

• Unforeseen failures and/or technical issues.

That's where QA, or “Quality Assurance”, comes in to ensure that the final product will meet the minimum requirements expected and achieving the expected functionality. That ensures a better experience for the users, making it more likely they continue using the product.

A tester is not the same as a QA Engineer

A tester is a person who follows test cases with a predefined set of instructions, analyzing obtained results vs. expected behavior and reporting them as successful or failed depending on each case. A QA engineer, on the other hand, needs to have more skills than just "running" test cases linearly.

A QA engineer needs to stay in the loop and get involved in different areas of the organization and phases during the life of the project; to be in constant communication with end users, Project Managers, Product Owners, and Developers. This is mainly because a QA engineer is the midpoint between administrators, product owners, and the development team that is implementing the necessary technical solution.

What does a “QA Engineer” do?

The QA engineer is in charge of conducting all the necessary tests of an application to ensure it complies with the requirements requested by the customer, sometimes "forcing" the system in controlled environments and/or scenarios with different situations to see how the application behaves.

The QA engineer requires analyzing and understanding the requirements and the business process involved with the system to be validated, through operation manuals, business flows, diagrams, etc. All this in order to understand the urgency and need for a specific software product to be released. The QA engineer is also responsible for planning, designing, executing, and reporting the necessary tests during the testing phase for the software project. It requires having constant communication with the experts, product owners and end users of the system, as well as with the programmers to clarify doubts, specifications and requirements before, during and after the test stage.

That is why adding a QA engineer or implementing at least a basic test phase during the time it is being developed will give you a big edge over your competition. Developers can only do so much, and their work load doesn't give them the time or focus to test like a QA engineer can.

In Conclusion

Every time we buy a product, use an online service, or pay for an “automated” system think about all the necessary effort that someone needed to do to ensure that it happened successfully and without errors.

Now that you know what a QA engineer does, you should consider having quality assurance done for your next project.

Get a free consultation and let's talk about your needs to find you a QA engineer, developer, or designer tailored to your team's needs.