Quality assurance objectives are a list of goals followed in the QA process. Quality Assurance is when testers successfully follow these objectives so products and services can meet and sometimes exceed the requirements. In addition, a successful QA process leads to greater customer satisfaction and an improved brand reputation.
If quality assurance objectives have not been adhered to, several problems can occur if the software is released too quickly after development finishes:
- Product Instability
- Gaps being discovered later in the cycle
- Customer dissatisfaction
- Sustainability issues in the competitive world
- Impact to reputation
Quality Assurance is the software approach that helps address these issues before launch. The process starts in parallel with development and continues beyond implementation.
Objectives of Quality Assurance
At high level, it is expected that Quality Assurance can confirm that the built software is “fit to use” and satisfies the defined requirements.
Improving Quality
In critical areas, no one likes to compromise on quality. We demand quality in every aspect of life, whether shopping, eating, or enjoying amusements. We expect the same of our software. Software acceptance depends on many factors, like ease of use, robustness, security, and accessibility.
The primary objective of Quality Assurance is to ensure the built software is good quality and then aim to make it better. With so many advances in the field of technology, the need is to keep moving at the same pace. The availability of different tools and platforms makes things easier, but they can also demand continuous learning. Quality Assurance aims to achieve quality through different testing types – functionality, accessibility, compatibility, and usability.
Becoming Compliant
Having an online presence is the norm these days. Therefore, most businesses launch a website or a native app to digitize. Digital payments smooth how money transfers occur as users transfer funds at the click of a button. One significant difference is the reduced queues of people waiting to withdraw money at Banks and ATMs.
Digital platforms are seeing an increase in users and conversions. Still, some do not attract the number of customers they might expect. The most significant factor driving the difference is trust. People think twice before providing data to any online site or app because they want assurances that their data will not be misused.
Quality Assurance objectives have an important part to play here. Think of a software application requesting that users enter some personal data. In those cases, it’s essential to have privacy policy documents visible on the application that conform to, for example, the US data protection laws or the European Union’s GDPR. Quality Assurance confirms that the document provides data capture and usage information. Quality Assurance also validates that sensitive data stored in the system is encrypted. As part of QA checks, teams ensure the software meets industry standards and is legally compliant and secure.
Standardized Process
Quality Assurance aims not only to test software and detect bugs; it’s much more than that. Quality Assurance helps in monitoring and controlling the development at each stage. In addition, it can help streamline the overall design and development approach. Here is a selection of questions that Quality Assurance might use to assess the process:
- Is every user requirement documented? Does the team create a functional requirement specification or user stories?
- Are the change requests tracked properly or directly implemented without any documentation?
- Does the team document every single design update?
- Does the release happen only after a formal sign-off from the QA team?
- Does the team strictly follow the Software Defect Life Cycle?
- Does the team automate every workflow?
- Does the team follow a checklist before each deployment?
- Does the team share release notes for all planned releases?
By asking focused questions like those above, QA can identify any weaknesses in the process and assist in improving them.
Reducing Costs
When a fault is detected in the system once the product is in circulation, it’s a pain for end users and developers. In addition, it will usually incur a cost to the organization. Quality Assurance objectives help identify any bugs or failures in the software for developers to address before releasing it to a broader audience.
The requirement analysis is the first step in testing any software. After requirement finalization, the product owner shares the feature details with the development and QA teams. Next, the Quality Assurance team defines the test plan and strategy for conducting testing. Then finally, the team works with the developers to raise concerns and validate the fixes.
The overall interaction between developers and the Quality Assurance team aids in identifying and resolving the problems early enough in the process. In addition, it reduces rework, thus saving effort and cost.
Building Confidence
The quality assurance process is expected to confirm confidence in the software so any further decisions can be made about the product on secure foundations. The Quality Assurance process determines the state of the software. It helps decide if the product is in a ready enough condition to be shipped.
Conclusion
To sustain in this competitive world, Quality Assurance/QA can give companies an edge in the marketplace. It aids teams in following the standardized process, becoming compliant, achieving on-time targets, increasing confidence, and accomplishing much more while adhering to quality.
