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The profile of a successful software tester is
different from that of a successful developer, says Sridhar Kulasekharan
Testing accounts for almost 30 percent of the
software development market. The global testing market is estimated
to be a $13 billion industry. With the boom of the third party software
testing business, the need for quality and trained manpower has
become a critical issue in the industry.
Software testing has been closely associated with
development until a few years ago. Now software testing as a career
is evolving rapidly and the profile of a successful tester is remarkably
different from that of a successful developer. As testing gains
more prominence, a generic career road map for software testing
is likely to be established in the years to come.
The Indian testing market
The size of the Indian testing market is estimated
to be Rs 150-200 crore. It is said to be growing at a faster rate
than the global average. The software testing arena in India is
estimated to require more than 16,000-18,000 professionals within
the next one year.
The market for software testers in India is likely
to open in a big way due to the following reasons:
- Availability of testers and their use of automated tools.
- Indian software testing companies can offer testing services
at a fraction of the cost in most other parts of the world.
- Quality of deliverables.
- Turnaround time for delivery.
Demand-supply situation
The supply is not at par with the demand due to
the paucity of professional testers in India and abroad, and lack
of awareness about testing as a career.
Software testing cannot be considered as an alternative
to software development. Testing and development require different
profiles. People working in these fields undertake different types
of training. The approach to work is also different and testing
can be treated as a separate career path.
Training in software testing
Professional training is required to start a career
in software testing. Training on the concepts of testing on different
hardware configurations, processes, using testing tools and other
test enablers, working with test management software, defect tracking
tools, etc., are required before working on a live testing project.
Following are some India-based organisations that
impart training in software testing:
- Quality Solutions for Information Technology (QSIT): A Bangalore
based IT related process consulting and high-end training company
with partners in China, and Vietnam. IIST partners with QSIT for
certification programmes in software testing-Certified Security
Testing Professional (CSTP).
- Vyom SQTL Labs (SQTL): A Pune-based company focused on training,
recruitment assistance and consulting in software quality, testing,
IT infrastructure and service management.
- AmitySoft, Chennai.
- QAI India.
- Anna University: Offers software testing as one of the elective
subjects in the ME Software Engineering degree course.
- Electronics Test and Development Centre, Chennai.
Each of these institutes has designed their curriculum
for people in different stages of their career, from beginners to
test engineers with few years of experience.
Roles and responsibilities of a QA trainee: Test
case writing for different projects; learning the art of peer-to-peer
review; capturing review defects; process adherence; getting trained
on different products and maintaining test environments; training
on automated tools; getting trained on at least one language for
performing White box testing.
Skill sets
Recruiters, particularly independent testing vendors,
look for the following in their prospective employees:
- Ability to follow processes;
- Ability to work with a problem until solved;
- Aptitude towards problem identification;
- Ability to analyse the reason for defects;
- Knowledge of testing methodology; testing tools, such as WinRunner,
Rational Robot, Silk Test, Web Load, etc.
Sridhar Kulasekharan is Chief Operating Officer,
ReadyTestGo
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