Inadequate approach to software testing puts companies at risk

Software failures are typically caused by a problem in the code that leads to a program crashing or producing false results. While some application failures can be quickly resolved, many can cost companies a significant amount in time, a loss of revenue and damage to reputation. Take the Facebook outage in October 2021 -- the worst the company has suffered in the past decade. It resulted in a 5 percent drop in share price and a loss of billions from its market cap value.

But as companies accelerate their digital transformation strategies to gain a competitive advantage, the pace of software development continues to increase at an overwhelming rate. This puts enormous pressure on IT teams to quickly develop and release software, often with limited resources. However, a critical step in releasing new software is deploying the right testing capabilities to find and fix any errors beforehand. But, despite this, risks are taken and corners are cut.

According to recent research by Leapwork, a concerning 85 percent of UK CEOs find it acceptable to release software that hasn't been properly tested so long as it's patched later. Furthermore, 79 percent of testers say that up to 40 percent of software goes to market without sufficient testing. This indicates a what seems to be a careless attitude toward software testing, which could have negative, lasting consequences.

Challenges with software testing

Software testing is critical to identifying defects and bugs in the code and enables you to check if the program matches the expected requirements in terms of function, compatibility and design. Historically, software testing was done manually, with testers playing the role of an end user and using the application’s features to ensure correct behavior. But as software development becomes more rapid and complex in nature, manual testing can no longer keep up. Companies are attempting to transition to automated testing to manage the more sophisticated requirements.

However, the vast majority of tools on the market day are complex and code-heavy, which means they need to rely on developer skills to operate and are difficult to maintain. With a major global developer skills shortage, this creates severe bottlenecks, increases costs, and delays project delivery times as development teams try to upskill manual testers, hire new talent, and lean on their existing developers for support. At the same time, companies are navigating tight deadlines to deliver quality at speed and meet new customer demands. This all culminates in an underwhelming 15 percent of software testing being successfully automated today, despite the rapid rate of digital transformation.

Lack of testing is a disaster waiting to happen

Despite nearly all testers expressing concern that insufficiently tested software developed by their company is going to market, 75 percent of CEOs say they’re confident their software is tested regularly. This shows a huge disconnect between CEOs and testers regarding the adequacy of software testing, with challenges flying under the radar and not being escalated until it's too late.

When it comes to the impact of a failure, over half (54 percent) of CEOs and 31 percent of testers say software failures have harmed their company’s reputation in the last five years, indicating that they understand the consequences of releasing software that hasn’t been tested properly. But an alarming number of CEOs still think it’s acceptable to issue it and prefer to rely on patch testing afterwards to fix any problems.

Reasons why software isn’t tested properly

While most business leaders understand the importance of software testing, 40 percent of CEOs whose company uses or develops in-house software that goes to market say 'reliance on manual testing' is the main reason why their software isn’t tested properly before being released. However, 50 percent of testers still say they’re using some element of automation.

'Lack of skilled developers' is another reason, according to just over a third of CEOs (34 percent) and testers (36 percent). This indicates the digital skills gap is still a big issue, with companies struggling to find the right skill-sets to manage test automation.

More than a third of CEOs (36 percent) and testers (35 percent) cite ‘under investment in testing personnel including continuous professional development’ as the main reason, implying that companies aren’t focusing enough of their efforts on upskilling testers.

An automated future

As more companies transition from manual testing to automation to meet the testing requirements of increasingly complex software, they’re struggling to scale their chosen solutions and leverage existing skills across Quality Assurance departments. Why? Because many solutions in the market rely on low code to manage the process. Combine that with the pressure of meeting digital transformation goals, and companies are cutting corners and taking risks.

On the current trajectory, more and more companies will struggle with failures and outages which could cost them a significant amount in financial and reputational damage. Businesses need to tighten up their software testing practices by considering a different approach and embrace solutions like no code test automation systems that don't require coding skills. This opens up the barrier to entry for software testing, and ensures that companies can access a broader range of talent to manage the process. Only then can the testing process be improved, challenges overcome and attitudes changed.

Image Credit: alphaspirit / Shutterstock

Christian Brink Frederiksen is co-founder and CEO at Leapwork.