Assurance. White Paper. Are you riding the digital wave on an assurance surfboard you can rely on?

Transcription

1 Assurace White Paper Are you ridig the digital wave o a assurace surfboard you ca rely o?

2 About the Author Subramaia Prasad Mk Subramaia Prasad MK is the Practice Maager for TCS Assurace Service Uit. Resposible for the telecom, media, utilities, ad Hi-Tech idustries i North America, he has worked with various customers to strategize customer experiece testig frameworks, ad QA ad testig approaches for large digital trasformatio programs. He champios QA forums withi ad outside TCS, ad his papers o Service-Orieted Architecture (SOA) Testig ad effective regressio testig have bee published at iteratioal cofereces. Explorig iovative methods to trasform QA orgaizatios ito value ceters is his particular area of iterest.

3 A leadig high-tech compay, despite producig world-class products struggled to compete with its peers i market peetratio. Research revealed that the lack of a uified customer egagemet strategy ad sub-optimal adoptio of social media for sales were the key roadblocks to this. To trasform growth ad outmaeuver competitio withi the ext six moths, the compay s marketig ad IT teams together prepared a detailed blueprit of a world-class digital strategy. The rider the package would cost the compay millios of dollars. Predictably, whe the blueprit came up for budgetary approval, cuts were bore by the Testig ad Quality Assurace (QA) teams. Happy i the kowledge that they were ridig the digital wave at a optimum cost, the compay wet ahead ad cosolidated their multiple customer egagemet chaels (web, mobile, ad poit of sale) across geographies, ad itegrated them with social media ad mobility solutios. The result? They did witess a turaroud but i the wrog directio! The iitial hype ad euphoria surroudig their advet ito the digital world was ot backed by a solid user experiece. Customers who iitially welcomed the move became icreasigly dissatisfied ad the lack of a uified value chai resulted i a uforesee pluge i sales. Istead of successfully ridig the digital wave, this high-tech compay was washed ashore. There are, ad will be, may more such examples wherei orgaizatios implemet digital strategies without uderstadig the critical eed for a ucompromised ad robust assurace strategy. Goig digital for busiess beefit is a uderstood reality; the crucial questio is: how best ca you ride the wave ad derive the maximum beefit? This whitepaper will walk you through the elemets of a smart assurace strategy ad give you a isight ito the commo pitfalls you may ecouter. It will serve as the surfboard that will keep you steady ad eable you to gai the maximum beefit from your ride atop the digital wave.

4 Cotets 1. The Ocea Market Outlook 5 2. The Chagig Tide Treds 5 3. The Surgig Waves Implicatios to Assurace Services 6 4. The Surfboard Required A Robust Digital Assurace Platform 8 5. Tried ad Tested Surfboards: Illustrative Cases 9 6. Gettig Ready for The Ride: Coclusio 10

5 The Ocea Market Outlook Ulike the traditioal image of a vast, calm ocea, today s marketplace ivokes the imagery of a fast-paced whirlpool that cotiuously throws up challeges. Customers today demad aythig, aywhere, aytime, ad o ay device. Goe are the days whe iovatio was a oe-off occurrece. Today, it has become a maistream activity for compaies that wat to esure cotiual differetiatio of products ad services. Idustry research echoes the same view: Sped o mobile will reach $1.3 trillio globally by 2015 Social media will occupy the top spot i the Chief Marketig Officer s (CMO) ageda Big Data will become democratized while aalytics will become maistream Use of o-demad ad Software as a Service (SaaS) models will icrease The bottom-lie: Digital trasformatio drives busiess performace. Hece, it is vital for orgaizatios to craft a cohesive strategy betwee the drivig forces Social, Mobile, Aalytics ad Big Data, ad Cloud. The Chagig Tide Treds These forces are alterig the behavior of orgaizatios across idustries. A dramatic chage ca be witessed i ed customer experieces, operatioal processes, ad busiess models for egagemet. Customer Experiece Operatioal Process Busiess Model Social Ehacig customer, employee ad supplier collaboratio ad iteractios Mobile Trasactig ad iteractig with everybody, aywhere, o ay device Cloud Hadlig Big Data / Supportig real time aalytics ad trasactios Big Data Aalytics Combiig o & off-premise IT resource, movig to o-demad cosumptio Figure 1: A overview of the treds goverig the behavior of orgaizatios 5

6 To adapt to this chagig ladscape ad stay ahead of competitio, orgaizatios across all idustries ot just media or telecom are embarkig o IT trasformatio by implemetig a digital strategy. This spas the etire cotet value chai icludig cotet creatio, cotet aggregatio, ad cotet distributio ad delivery. However, coceptualizig IT strategies to create digital products or cosumig digital products withi the existig ladscape is ot simple or silo-ed to a particular busiess uit. A holistic ad itegrated activity spaig all busiess uits, it requires trasformatio i the way IT is beig delivered at preset. I this regard, the assurace orgaizatio (QA ad testig) plays a vital role i certifyig the digital trasformatio. Evolvig ito such a positio calls for a revamp of assurace service processes, tools, people, ad methodologies. The followig sectio highlights the future of a assurace services orgaizatio ad its key focus areas i this cotext. The Surgig Waves Implicatios to Assurace Services Assurace services orgaizatios today are characterized by the followig traits: Focus o applicatio level testig or (at the most) iter-applicatio testig Challeged by protracted test cycles ad lack of Retur o Ivestmet (ROI) from test automatio iitiatives Exist i the role of a guardia to assure a fuctioality is delivered correctly Acceptig of the historic fact that assurace activities follow developmet activities with very little overlap This operatig style will dramatically chage ad the future of assurace orgaizatios will be characterized by: Trasformatio to assure holistic digital product implemetatio which ecompasses a multitude of platforms, services, applicatios, ad exteral ecosystems Disruptive iovatio, resultig i automatio across the value chai, leadig to a ear robotic test executio Evolvig ito the ultimate guardia of customer experiece, ad a busiess assurace parter for the IT orgaizatio Last but ot the least, assurace will eed to be wove ito the fabric of the etire value chai, from developmet to operatios. 6

7 Today Tomorrow Applicatio level Testig Digital Product Assurace Protracted Test Cycles Automatio across test value chai Guardia for fuctioality Guardia for Customer Experiece Dev Test Ops Dev Test Ops Figure 2: A outlie of the ievitable trasformatio i the operatig style of assurace orgaizatios Some of the key themes that a assurace orgaizatio must focus o i order to build a foudatio for this chage are as follows: Busiess assurace: Adoptig the right domai ad techology aliged assurace strategy is key to assurig high product quality. For example, assurace orgaizatios will eed to customize test approaches for certifyig digital publishig platforms, media asset maagemet, broadcast maagemet systems, mobile applicatios, video streamig, ad gamig applicatios. Customer experiece: Measurig a digital strategy, that primarily aims to improve customer experiece, o the basis of several quality-of-service parameters such as applicatio availability ad resposiveess, digital data quality, usability, iteroperability, ad the extet of busiess process automatio provides isight ito its effectiveess. Assurace strategies should embrace methodologies ad metrics that ca help measure these customer experiece parameters. Rapid testig: Beig well-equipped with tools ad techologies will yield icreased automatio levels ad the right ROI. Rapid testig refers to the icreasig velocity of assurace activities across the value chai. It is ot just about test executio automatio, but automatio i all or most assurace activities. Most of these digital strategy implemetatios are drive by a Agile delivery model ad rapid testig complemets Agile testig very well. Lea assurace operatios: Trasformig assurace orgaizatios for digital strategy implemetatio requires elimiatig iefficiecies across all assurace activities. Assurace orgaizatios should utilize smart strategies such as defect detectio techiques ad test desig optimizatio, which ot oly streamlie efforts but also improve quality predictability. Iovatio drive delivery: Iovatio is crucial to drive this trasformatio. Orgaizatios must set-up iovatio forums ad coucils to create ideatio platforms to collect ideas, qualify, prioritize, ad implemet them, ad measure their effectiveess. 7

8 The Surfboard Required A Robust Digital Assurace Platform I order to realize the full beefit of the strategies metioed here, what orgaizatios eed is a comprehesive digital assurace platform, which serves as a blueprit to craft a digital assurace strategy. The strategy should be able to idetify the right tools, methodologies, ad measures to assure exceptioal customer experiece. A importat elemet of such a platform is a set of reusable assets ad eablers which ca improve the efficiecy of assurace processes sigificatly. The platform must offer coverage for the etire digital value chai, from cotet creatio ad cotet aggregatio to cotet distributio ad delivery. It must cater to specific digital assurace services offerigs such as: Digital cotet testig Digital asset maagemet testig Digital rights maagemet testig Globalizatio ad localizatio testig Media testig (video streamig ad playback) Mobility testig With regard to customer experiece, the platform must have the capability to assure multi-chael iteractios, usability, security, accessibility, social media itegratio, ad gamificatio of applicatios. Additioally, these digital assurace service offerigs must be built atop a foudatio layer that complies with idustry QA stadards ad offers iche testig services aliged with specific techology ad software developmet lifecycle eeds. I additio to the features metioed earlier, the right surfboard (i.e. the digital assurace platform) must have the followig characteristics: Focus o assurig improved customer experiece to positively ifluece busiess Key Performace Idicators (KPIs) through testig Iclude idustry specific test solutios ad methodologies i the digital strategy to improve busiess cofidece idex to ear 100% Provide early defect detectio ad lea assurace methodologies such as testig, structural quality, ad test desig optimizatio techiques to reduce overall test effort by aroud 30% Offer reusable test automatio frameworks ad facilitate the adoptio of the right tool sets across the etire cotet value chai, to reduce test cycle time by 30% to 40% Icorporate iovative test approaches such as assurace o cloud ad Testig as a Service (TaaS) to eable the test orgaizatio to be future ready. 8

9 Tried ad Tested Surfboards: Illustrative Cases A example of a leadig healthcare compay is a case i poit. The key objectives of their digital trasformatio program were to provide seamless multi-chael services, deliver persoalized ad targeted cotet to users, ad esure a cosistet user experiece. The program spaed across 17 work streams ad more tha 60 applicatios. The assurace strategy uderpied critical elemets like customer experiece focus, assurace across the lifecycle, automatio everywhere, ad a follow the su model to provide a 24*7 test cycle. Saliet features of the strategy icluded oe chael testig by validatig style grids, automated browser compatibility testig, ad deployig a right-skilled team backed by domai, techology, ad domai expertise. I additio, tools ad techiques were used extesively to deliver automatio eve o ew fuctioality (progressive) testig withi each Agile sprit, ad o mobile test validatios ad comparisos betwee mobile ad o-mobile chaels. This helped the healthcare compay achieve over 30% reductio i testig cycle time ad improved customer experiece through a oe chael test strategy. Aother example is of a leadig telecom service provider that wated its video streamig platform to iclude a ed-to-ed validatio of the cotet value chai. They tested the ed customer experiece o smartphoes, tablets, smart TVs, ad gamig cosoles. These possible tools of choice were assessed ad robust automatio architecture scalable across multiple devices usig a combiatio of the best-i-class tools was developed. A test automatio framework was put i place with the followig tool sets to validate cotet across the value chai. Device test automatio usig Eggplat ad SeeTest Cross-browser compatibility testig (Firefox, Chrome, ad Iteret Explorer) usig TCS ibrowse framework User Iterface (UI) ad frot-ed validatio usig HP QuickTest Professioal (HP QTP) SOA ad message testig usig the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) UI framework This helped the customer optimize the overall test approach ad esured validatio of real-life customer scearios i the test eviromet. 9

10 Gettig Ready for the Ride: Coclusio Most orgaizatios ted to believe that creatig a strategy to esure digital trasformatio is simply a seamless extesio of existig testig practices. However, that is ot true. I fact, the very first step towards gettig your test orgaizatio ready for digital trasformatio is to uderstad that traditioal testig approaches may ot work ad that your assurace strategy eeds a re-look. You eed to build your surfboard (digital assurace platform) ad holistic assurace services compoets i aligmet with the busiess ad techology objectives of your orgaizatio s digital strategy. I lie with that, you eed to choose the right digital assurace platform which focuses o exceptioal customer experiece ad brigs i competecies from idustry experiece ad reusable frameworks without re-ivetig the wheel. Oce you have the compoets of a digital assurace platform, you ca the execute assurace services ad assure digital strategy implemetatio. Now that you re aware of the rise ad fall of the tidal patters i the digital ocea, the must-haves of a robust ad reliable surfboard, the balacig act required, practical challeges that might surface, ad the requisite do s ad do ts of ridig the digital wave from a assurace stadpoit, it is time to head to the beach! 1. IDC Predictios, Europea Software i 2013, December IDC, Worldwide ad US Discrete Testig Services Forecast Portfolio Complexity Drives Growth, July IDC, Covergece of Mobility ad Cloud Services Will Drive a Fudametal Chage i the Applicatio Outsourcig Busiess Model ad Potetial Player adscape, November Everest Research, Eterprise Cloud Adoptio - Year 2012 i Review, February Forrester, Tur Big Data Iward With IT Aalytics 2012, December TCS 2013 Global Tred Study: The Emergig Big Returs o Big Data, April

11 About Assurace Services Uit TCS Assurace Services Uit (ASU) is the eterprise testig arm of TCS primed to reder idepedet validatio ad verificatio (IV&V) services for global customers. Built atop a foudatioal layer of cosiderable pedigree ad haressig the power of a best-i-class Itegrated Quality Maagemet System (iqms), coformat to idustry models such as CMMi, ISO9000 ad IEEE, ASU s offerigs istatiate the richess of the frameworks we have orgaically evolved over 40 years. With emphasis o the twi pillars of process ad product quality, ASU seeks to straddle the full spectrum of assurace ragig from prevetio to detectio. With over 15,500+ test professioals spaig a gamut of fuctioal ad o-fuctioal competecies ad the experiece of havig setup over 45+ dedicated test cetres, ASU brigs to bear a combiatio of expertise ad experiece that will beefit you. As a idepedet busiess uit with executive accoutability to the seior maagemet of TCS, ASU offers a umatched array of idepedet test capabilities deployable i flexible ad agile reditio models suitig the busiess, IT ad procuremet imperatives of a eterprise such as yours. Ogoig ivestmets i iovatio (i collaboratio with the office of the CTO, TCS) ad research (istrumeted through TCS s idepedet research facilities, Labs ad strog academic iterfaces) serve to positio us at the cuttig edge of achievig measurable ad cotiually improvig ed-busiess quality objectives. Cotact To kow more about TCS Assurace Services, cotact Global.Assurace@tcs.com Subscribe to TCS White Papers TCS.com RSS: Feedburer: About Tata Cosultacy Services (TCS) Tata Cosultacy Services is a IT services, cosultig ad busiess solutios orgaizatio that delivers real results to global busiess, esurig a level of certaity o other firm ca match. TCS offers a cosultig-led, itegrated portfolio of IT ad IT-eabled ifrastructure, egieerig ad TM assurace services. This is delivered through its uique Global Network Delivery Model, recogized as the bechmark of excellece i software developmet. A part of the Tata Group, Idia s largest idustrial coglomerate, TCS has a global footprit ad is listed o the Natioal Stock Exchage ad Bombay Stock Exchage i Idia. For more iformatio, visit us at IT Services Busiess Solutios Cosultig All cotet / iformatio preset here is the exclusive property of Tata Cosultacy Services Limited (TCS). The cotet / iformatio cotaied here is correct at the time of publishig. No material from here may be copied, modified, reproduced, republished, uploaded, trasmitted, posted or distributed i ay form without prior writte permissio from TCS. Uauthorized use of the cotet / iformatio appearig here may violate copyright, trademark ad other applicable laws, ad could result i crimial or civil pealties. Copyright 2014 Tata Cosultacy Services Limited TCS Desig Services I M I 01 I 14