From ATMs no longer working and payment systems going down as well as banking institutions facing widespread disruption, the recent CrowdStrike IT outage in July was a stark reminder of the vulnerability of even the most established and modern landscapes.
So, what went wrong? A “buggy” update to antivirus software.
Although the issue was identified and isolated and a fix was deployed hours later, it was already too late for millions of systems people rely on daily.
Recovery often requires businesses to take actions that could lead to revenue loss, higher costs, operational inefficiencies, security breaches, and, even worse, reputational damage days, weeks, or months later.
But there’s an empowering truth underlying this mayhem: IT outages caused by faulty software deployments and updates are avoidable.
“Often hidden behind the scenes in the innovation journey, the software testing environment can be an unsung hero,” according to Bil Khan, a senior director at SAP.
“By meticulously simulating real-world conditions, the environment can detect and resolve potential issues long before they reach production,” he said.
“This not only safeguards against the immediate chaos of an IT outage but also strengthens the overall stability and reliability of the IT system.”
In a global survey of organisations using SAP application testing solutions by Tricentis, IDC discovered how the technology sets up a testing environment that prevents IT outages without compromising productivity, performance, or profitability.
“Testing cycles are accelerated when potential issues are identified and resolved fast enough to reduce the risk of deploying flawed updates,” Khan stated.
Analysing the impact of change helps determine conditions that should be tested to minimize errors and those that do not carry that risk. As a result, the number of “must test” conditions for a single application can be far fewer than the scope in manual testing methods.
“The testing process can be automated to detect programs, applications, and integration connections that can be affected by any given change,” Khan noted.
“Instead of running all conditions to mitigate all risks, organizations can physically work on approximately 20% of the initial scope.”
At the same time, the automation capabilities of application testing solutions do the rest.
“This narrower testing scope decreases errors and bugs when a newly developed application moves to production,” Khan remarked.
He added that “by reducing the risk of incidents that make it into the application during development and production, IT teams can improve everyday user experiences. Workplace frustration dissipates, workloads decline, and the need for future hypercare support is minimal.”
Efficiency
Even if 70% of testing processes are automated, organisations can significantly lower costs related to the testing cycle by achieving full automation, Khan argued.
“For some teams, these savings are equivalent to 10,000 person-hours that can be reallocated toward more strategic projects,” he shared.
Additionally, embedded machine learning in application testing solutions can help establish self-healing test cases, lowering test costs even further.
Self-healing test cases automatically adjust to application changes, limiting manual intervention and delivering consistently effective and reliable tests.
“This capability not only decreases test maintenance requests but also enhances the overall efficiency of the testing process,” Khan said.
“Embedded ML in app testing solutions can help establish self-healing test cases, lowering test costs.”
– Bil Khan
To Khan, the added benefit of automation in development, testing, and quality assurance is easy to notice.
“When using manual processes, IT organizations often go live with new applications and updates every six months. Now, they can release new applications, features, and mobile apps within two months.”
Khan added that “this increased release frequency enables businesses to stay competitive and responsive to market demands, delivering enhanced user experiences more rapidly.”
Productivity
With automation cutting the time required by 99%, IT teams can perform performance testing weekly or more frequently, instead of just once per quarter.
“This regular testing cadence helps ensure updates and new features work as intended, maintaining system reliability and performance,” Khan noted.
He stressed that “automation allows development teams to conduct thorough performance tests more often, so the system can handle increased loads without losing functionality and performance.”
To Khan, “this proactive testing approach prevents issues before they occur, fostering a more stable and efficient IT environment.”
Moreover, automated testing verifying essential capabilities can lessen demand for manual regression testing.
“This shift saves valuable time and frees development teams to concentrate on innovative and strategic projects,” he said, adding that “the result is a more agile development process, where users are given new features and improvements with greater speed and confidence.”
As companies grapple with the operational and reputational damage caused by such outages, it becomes increasingly clear that effective software testing environments are essential.
“By transitioning from reactive crisis management to proactive IT control, businesses can reduce the risk of outages, helping ensure smoother operations and enhancing customer trust,” Khan said.
More important, proper software quality assurance goes beyond just testing, he argued.
“The key is having an integrated environment that not only tests one aspect of change but also predicts how the performance and connections of all applications within the system landscape can be impacted,” Khan concluded.
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