Testing and quality assurance are characterized as the most expensive tasks in the software life cycle. However, several studies also indicate that the industry could enhance product quality and reduce costs by investing in developing testing practices. Software engineering educators can bridge the gap between formal education and industry practices to produce more industry-ready graduates, by observing the industry in action. To find out the current state of industry, we conducted a study in software organizations to assess how they test their products and which process models they follow. According to the survey results, the organizations rely heavily on test automation and use sophisticated testing infrastructures, apply agile practices even when working with mission-critical software, and have reduced the use of formal process reference and assessment models. Based on the results, this paper identifies a number of key learning objectives in quality assurance and software testing disciplines that the industry expects from university graduates. The principles of constructive alignment are used to present learning goals, teaching methods, and assessment methods that align with the industry requirements.

The aim of this empirical study was to elucidate organizational and customer related challenges that affect the software testing process in software developing companies and how these challenges affect software quality construction. Using the grounded theory research method, we studied eleven software companies operating in different domains such as banking, space satellites, health care and energy. Seven main findings are presented: First, the low involvement of testers in the planning phase of the software development life cycle (SDLC) led to underestimation of the scope of testing and resources required. Second, there was poor buy-in for testing from project managers, which led to insufficient involvement of testers in some SDLC activities. Third, the risk-taking behaviour of project managers led them to skip important tests. Fourth, vertical organizational structures and modes of operation within the companies limited the mandate and visibility of testing and quality assurance units in development projects. Fifth, oversights in budgeting and contracts between customers and the software developing companies limited the extent of testing. Sixth, resources management, which was related to poor use of available systems, created a communication gap between teams and conflict in requirements interpretation; and seventh, customers' willingness to co-operate in after-sales testing limited the extent and efficiency of such testing and thus affected software quality.

Software projects have four main objectives; produce required functionalities, with acceptable quality, in budget and in schedule. Usually these objectives are implemented by setting requirements for the software projects, and working towards achieving these requirements as well as possible. So how is the intended quality handled in this process of pursuing project goals? The objective of this study is to explore how organizations understand software quality and identify factors which seem to affect the quality outcome of the development process. The study applies two research approaches; a survey with 31 organizations and in-depth interviews with 36 software professional from 12 organizations for identifying concepts that affect quality. The study confirms that the quality in software organization is a complex, interconnected entity, and the definitions of desired and perceived quality fluctuate between different process stakeholders. Overall, in many cases the software organizations have identified the desired quality, but are not communicating it properly.

Cloud computing is causing a paradigm shift in the provision and use of computing services, away from the traditional desktop form to online services. This implies that the manner in which these computing services are tested should also change. This paper discusses the research issues that cloud computing imposes on software testing. These issues were gathered during interviews with industry practitioners from eleven software organizations. The interviews were analyzed using qualitative grounded theory method. Findings of the study were compared with existing literature. The research issues were categorized according to application, management, legal and financial issues. By addressing these issues, researchers can offer reliable recommendation for practitioners in the industry.

The objective of this qualitative study was to observe and empirically study how software organizations decide on which test cases to select for their software projects. As the software test processes are limited in resources such as time or money, a selection process usually exists for tested features. In this study we conducted a survey on 31 software-producing organizations, and interviewed 36 software professionals from 12 focus organizations to gain a better insight into testing practices. Our findings indicated that the basic approaches to test case selection are usually oriented towards two possible objectives. One is the risk-based selection, where the aim is to focus testing on those parts that are too expensive to fix after launch. The other is design-based selection, where the focus is on ensuring that the software is capable of completing the core operations it was designed to do. These results can then be used to develop testing organizations and to identify better practices for test case selection.

In this paper, we studied the differences in testing activities between software organizations which apply agile development methods and organizations which take the traditional plan-driven approach. Our focus was on the concepts which allow the software organization to successfully apply agile development methods or plan-driven methods. We also observed the test process enhancements and hindrances, which originate in the selected development method. We interviewed 12 organizations, which were selected to represent different polar types of software production. The interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed for further analysis. The study yielded hypotheses which were derived by applying the qualitative grounded theory method. The results indicated that in practice, agile methods can improve the position of testing through the early involvement of testing activities in development, and also have a positive influence on end-product satisfaction. By applying these results, organizations can improve their processes and avoid pitfalls when transitioning to agile methods.

The objective of this qualitative study was to explore and understand the problems of software testing in practice and find improvement proposals for these issues. The study focused on organizational units that develop and test technical software for automation or telecommunication domains, for which a survey of testing practices was conducted and 26 organizations were interviewed. From this sample, five organizations were further selected for an in-depth grounded theory case study. The analysis yielded hypotheses indicating that a software project design should promote testability as architectural attribute and apply specialized personnel to enhance testing implementation. Testing tools should also be selected based on usability and configurability criteria. These results of this study can be used in developing the efficiency of software testing and in development of the testing strategy for organization.

This study explores the factors that affect the use of software testing automation in different types of organizations. A case study was conducted in five organizations that develop and test technical software for the automation or telecommunication domains. The data was collected from interviews with managers, testers, and developers in each organization. The grounded theory was used as the data analysis method. According to the results, the factors which emphasize the wide use of testing automation include that the tested products are generic and independent of third-party systems. Low human involvement in testing, steady underlying technology, and reusability support the use of testing automation.

The objective of this qualitative study was to understand the complex practice of software testing, and based on this understanding, to develop hypotheses on testing organizations and knowledge management. The population of the study consisted of organizational units (OUs) that develop and test technical software for automation or telecommunication domains. First, a survey of testing practices was conducted and 26 OUs were interviewed. From this sample, five OUs were further selected for an in-depth case study. The study used grounded theory as its research method and the data was collected from 41 theme-based interviews. The analysis yielded hypotheses that included that the business orientation of an OU affects testing organization, knowledge management strategy, and outsourcing of testing. Further, identifying and avoiding barriers and using enablers improve knowledge transfer between development and testing. The results of this study can be used in developing the testing organization and the knowledge management strategy of an OU.