Global Software Test Automation: A Discussion of Software Testing for Executives

by Hung Q. Nguyen, Michael Hackett, and Brent K. Whitlock

"Read this book to learn what you need to do!"
     — Steve Wozniak, CTO, Wheels of Zeus

Global Software Test Automation is the first book to offer software testing strategies and tactics for executives. Written by executives and endorsed by executives, it is also the first to offer a practical business case for effective test automation, as part of the innovative new approach to software testing: Global Test Automation — a proven solution, backed by case studies, that leverages both test automation and offshoring to meet your organization's quality goals.

Why you should read this book

This book was written to highlight the critical issues associated with software testing and quality assurance that impact the effectiveness of your company's executive staff and bottom line, and to share a strategy that can improve them. An effective test strategy can do this by improving the visibility of the quality of your company's products, so that you can make better management decisions, lower your testing costs, and accelerate your time to market.

This book addresses five core questions surrounding testing:

• Why should you care about and spend money on testing?
• Why must you treat testing as a strategic effort?
• Why should testing have its own properly funded budget, separate from development?
• Why must you have better visibility into quality and testing effectiveness?
• Why is Global Test Automation your best-practice solution?

These questions address the elements of quality (customer satisfaction) and money (spending the least amount of money to prevent future loss). The bottom line in business is money (making more and/or spending less). Ultimately, the benefits of effective software testing boil down to increasing your revenue or decreasing your costs, both of which directly impact the bottom line.

What is Global Test Automation?

Global Test Automation is the integration of the latest test automation methodologies and technologies with global resource strategies to fully capitalize on the speed, cost advantages, and best practices in automation and global sourcing.

This structured approach is based on a methodology known as Action-Based Testing (ABT), which creates a hierarchical test development model. ABT allows test engineers (domain experts who may not be skilled in coding) to focus on developing executable tests based on action keywords, while automation engineers (highly skilled technically but who may not be good at developing effective tests) focus on developing the low-level scripts that implement the keyword-based actions used by the test experts. The ABT methodology has been proven for over a decade in Europe, and has now gained traction and popularity in the US.

Global Test Automation seamlessly allows the best utilization of the skill sets of your staff back home as well as offshore staff, in a strategic approach that makes the most effective use of advanced automation and globally distributed organizations.