Software Testing Services – sweet spot for Indian providers (Startups, SME, Big Players)

This is first time I thought of doing some serious research on software testing services; which I originally assumed as an addon service, with around 10% of the total project cost and I believed it cannot be a core offering to run the business engine with full throttle.

But with the rising need for performance and accuracy, demand for quality assurance service is obtaining new heights. Over last few years India is contributing to one-third of the total global testing outsourcing and is still on rise.

Continuing with the traditional manual testing, now industry is also focused on automated testing for more accurate and high performing applications.

Top emerging trends are: 

• Cloud Testing
• Mobile Testing
• Security Testing
• Enterprise Testing
• Testing Consultancy 

As per NASSCOM, Infiniti and other research organization 

• Total market share for testing is US$ 30 Billion
• Total outsourcing market is US$ 10 Billion
• Outsourcing market for India is US$ 3.25 Billion
• Independent testing outsourcing Market for India is US$ 2 Billion
• Out of US$ 2 Billion, big players take 70% of the pie 

Therefore SMB and Startups are still left with US$ 0.6 Billion market, with predicted CAGR of 15.6%

PRICING

•  In the US and UK the total cost of an employee is considered to be around double their salary (that varies some based on the level of benefits offered, location, and other similar factors) and QA testers earn between $45,000 and $90,000 a year depending on experience level, industry, and location. This would mean that on average a Tester in the US should have an employment cost somewhere around $60 - $75 per hour.

• Billing rates for Outsourced testers ranges from $25 - $40 per hour in places like India and China up to as much as $60 an hour for outsourced testers in industrialized countries. 

• It can be as high as $150 per hour  in some locations of if specialized knowledge is required.

RESOURCE COSTING

TYPE	1-2 years (experience)	3-4 years (experience)	5-6 years (experience)
Manual Testing	US$ 4500.00 p.a.	US$ 7250.00 p.a.	US$ 11000.00 p.a.
Automated Testing	US$ 5500.00 p.a.	US$ 9000.00 p.a.	US$ 13000.00 p.a.

TESTING TOOLS

Open Source Testing Tools	Licensed Testing Tools	Open Source Bug Tracking Tools
Selenium	QTP & WinRunner by HP	Mantis
Tellurium	IBM Rational	Bugzilla
Apache JMeter	Silk	Trac
AutoIt	SOAtest	Redmine
OpenSTA	TestComplete	Fossil
DogTail	Telerik Test Studio	Mantis

GOTO MARKET STRATEGY

Big players like Infosys, Wipro, CSC, CapGemini are catering to market needs by establishing Center of Excellence and acquisition of existing test centers. Like AppLabs was acquired by CSC, Electronic Data Systems bought RelQ which specializes in software testing, validation, verification and quality assurance.

Pure play companies like QA Infotech and Maveric Systems are the leading names in software testing outsourcing. Such companies are making remarkable growth by strong and impeccable track record of delivering support services to industry.

QA Infotech established in 2003 with headquarters in Michigan and delivery centers in India is providing services to industry vertical like BFSI, retail, publishing. By making the strategic partnership with SmarteSoft Inc, Texas and setting up specialized test center for mobile testing, company is continually expanding.

Maveric System is no different in the league. With its presence in Middle East, Europe and US through strategic partnerships with Wareef United (Saudi Arabia), Real Consulting Services Limited (UK), Mission Assurance and Testing Limited (UK) and SmarteSoft Inc (US) Maveric successfully generated the revenue of Rs 70 Cr in Fiscal 2010 with about 20% growth in next year.

Simple yet effective strategy is

• Identify the correct spark plug
• Stay focused
• Deliver results & attain customer loyalty
• Train & retain workforce
• Innovate & create differentiator
• Build relationships & make strategic alliance to enter new markets
• Help end customers to succeed
• Finally, Make The World Bug Free.....!