Since the beginning of 2023, InnoTech has served as WhiteStar’s trusted IT partner. This collaborative relationship initially focused on data-centric endeavors, with InnoTech undertaking various projects in this domain. However, as the partnership evolved, WhiteStar recognized the potential for InnoTech to extend their capabilities beyond data and into the realm of testing.
Thus, InnoTech was presented with the opportunity to broaden their expertise and take on testing-related challenges. This transition represented a pivotal moment in the partnership, catalyzing the establishment of a specialized testing team dedicated to meeting Whitestar’s evolving needs.
As Luis Fortes, WhiteStar’s Transformation and Improvement Director, put it “InnoTech’s team has brought availability, flexibility and speed of delivery. With the teams we had, they were shorter, and now with the resources that InnoTech has at WhiteStar internally, they can immediately meet the needs we have. And it’s been a great help, because it’s helped make the process faster. Depending on the priority of the project, the testing process is almost immediate after development, and that makes us very happy with the work.”
Read the case study below to read about InnoTech’s collaboration with WhiteStar.
Challenges and Objectives
Operating within an Agile framework, InnoTech took on the challenge to develop a testing framework along side WhiteStar. This meticulous task involved the development of a framework for testing external and internal platforms, as well as scrutinizing their web application through sprints.
This challenge arose from the necessity to implement an organized and well-structured testing environment within WhiteStar.
With a commitment to Agile principles, InnoTech diligently crafted exhaustive test scenarios, ensuring comprehensive coverage to preemptively identify and rectify potential bugs before end-users encounter them. Their current focal point revolves around updating their core application, necessitating a thorough examination of every module within a tight timeline.
In the words of Diogo Almeida, QA Lead from InnoTech, “Upon arriving at the company, the need was identified to create a standardised testing flow to be implemented in all projects. In the first few months, constant training and alignment was carried out with employees in the testing area to establish the necessary culture. Meetings were also held with users and developer representatives to demonstrate what the company’s new testing culture should look like, with a view to greater efficiency.”
Team Formation and Evolution
In the beginning of the project the testing team consisted of three individuals – one QA Lead, one QA Tester, and one Service Manager. With the need to have a bigger team, InnoTech swiftly employed their scalbility capacity to encompass five members, comprising four QA testers, and one QA Lead.
Notably, the team’s composition underwent a transformation, with individuals originally outside the testing domain seamlessly integrating into their new roles. Team scalibility is often one of the most interesting benefits for clients working with IT consulting companies. This allows companies to scale their dedicated IT teams up or down, adapting to project requirements.
It what respects team scalibility, the project’s QA Lead, Diogo Almeida, tells us “Now we have a report to track planning, and monitoring, which means that during execution we’ll be able to see how the flow is going, we’ll have control through the report. This report allows us to arrive at the delivery meeting and say, “Look, the tests happened this way.” And then we can analyse and understand why the delivery was satisfactory or not in some cases. That didn’t exist. There was a lack of standardisation and the lack of standardisation leads to a lack of understanding, and the process starts to become unscalable.”
Moreover, Diogo talks about how the team found their way into WhiteStar’s structure and how they adapted into their scalable team model “In the beginning I had one person, today I have six. If everyone doesn’t write and speak the same language, nobody understands each other. So the first thing is standardisation. We started with internal projects, so we began to define this process so that we could be successful.
When we arrived at the first project we drew up a flow and standardised it. So that was the first solution, to understand the situation, who the stakeholders were, who the approvers were and to realise that each step had its own capacity and understanding. Then we found our place – we were the point of connection between IT and the business teams.”
At this moment, InnoTech’s team working on the WhiteStar project is mostly composed of former Outsystems developers. This poses as an advantage, as their prior development background, facilitates the navigation of the intricacies of testing.
Agile Methodology
Agile methodology is an iterative and incremental approach to software development that emphasizes flexibility, collaboration, and customer satisfaction. It involves breaking down the development process into small, manageable iterations called sprints, typically lasting one to four weeks. At the end of each sprint, an increment of the product is delivered, allowing for continuous feedback and adaptation throughout the development lifecycle.
In testing, Agile methodology can be applied in several key ways:
Continuous Testing: Testing is integrated throughout the development process, with testers working in parallel with developers to identify and address issues early on. This ensures that defects are caught and resolved promptly, minimizing rework and accelerating delivery timelines.
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- Adaptability: Agile testing prioritizes adaptability and responsiveness to changing requirements and priorities. Test plans and strategies are flexible, allowing for adjustments based on evolving project needs and customer feedback.
- Collaboration: Agile testing promotes collaboration and communication among cross- functional team members, including developers, testers, product owners, and stakeholders. By fostering a culture of collaboration, Agile teams can leverage diverse perspectives and expertise to drive quality and innovation.
- User-Centric Testing: Agile testing focuses on delivering value to end-users by prioritizing testing efforts based on user stories and acceptance criteria. Testers work closely with product owners to understand user needs and expectations, ensuring that testing efforts align with business objectives.
- Iterative Testing: Testing occurs incrementally throughout each sprint, with testers continuously verifying and validating features as they are developed. This iterative approach allows for early detection of defects and enables rapid feedback cycles, facilitating quick course corrections and improvements.
Before introducing an Agile methodoly, WhiteStar was operating in an Waterfall approach. For Fernanda Silva, Senior Project Manager at WhiteStar, that is what stand- out from InnoTech’s approach: “The main difference felt is this agility in relation to the business teams. It’s almost immediate access compared to Waterfall. With Agile you don’t have any intermediation between the business team, the Project Manager and development. Obviously we now have the testers who are there acting as quality control in each phase.”
Innovation and Internal Testing
Beyond providing the testing team for WhiteStar’s external projects, InnoTech serves as the testing team for internal applications, assuming responsibility for quality assurance across all in-house developments.
Notably, they developed a bespoke testing framework from scratch, indicative of our commitment to innovation and excellence.
In the words of the WhiteStar’s IT Solutions Design Lead, João Fialho, “InnoTech’s dedication to crafting a robust testing framework and their adeptness in embracing Agile methodology have been instrumental in driving the success of our testing initiatives at WhiteStar. Their proactive approach, meticulous attention to detail, and commitment to delivering high-quality results have exceeded our expectations. We highly value our partnership and look forward to continued collaboration in our journey towards software excellence.”
Conclusion
InnoTech’s dive into the domain of testing for WhiteStar exemplifies a seamless transition driven by adaptability, expertise, and a shared commitment to excellence. Through their Agile methodology, meticulous attention to detail, and innovative approach, they have not only met but exceeded expectations.
In the words of João Fialho, IT Solutions Design Lead, “There are fewer bugs detected in production, which means there is a much higher quality of delivery in IT. This is because there are fewer regressions, fewer bugs detected in production. And this is obviously reflected in the time it takes to do less reworking. As the error is identified earlier, there is less reworking later on. This translates into monetary savings. I think it’s actually been a very interesting journey and one that is highly valued and recognised by the company’s various stakeholders.”
This project positions InnoTech as a formidable partner in the realm of software testing. As for WhiteStar, it guarrantees a smooth execution of new development project and the utmost dedication for maintaining both their external and internal platforms.
