Software Quality Assurance: Domestic Versus Offshore

As providers of software quality assurance in the US ourselves, we can certainly appreciate and understand the importance of selecting a quality assurance resource that is both capable and budget-friendly. Tough economic times demand an even keener scrutiny on “the bottom line”.

Having said this, Beta Breakers does not claim to compete against offshore beta testers strictly from an hourly rate perspective. Whereas offshore quality assurance rates have been on a steady increase over the years, we admit that it is still a challenging task to match their rates hour for hour.

However, if you take a step back and look at the big picture, some interesting facts come to light. Our clients have found that there is a tradeoff between performance and cost.

• Give an offshore tester a test plan and he will follow it to a “T”.  However, ask him to ad hoc, “color outside the lines” so to speak, and the results will not be as good.
• Offshore beta testers tend to operate in a myopic manner and lack “the sixth sense” we possess that enables us to uncover those hard-to-find issues—ones that your users will surely discover when the software goes live.

Other obvious challenges involving offshore resources include timing – they are sleeping when you are working, and vice versa – and language barriers.

For Beta Breakers’ clients, the bottom line is that whereas the initial hourly cost may sound attractive, the performance of offshore software quality assurance services will not match that of a competent domestic resource.

• The amount of money saved over the course of testing is quickly lost (and then some) when applications are released in a flawed condition and must be fixed.
• On top of that, it is next to impossible to measure the cost of lost credibility when a company allows its customers to find bugs the beta testers should have.

To avoid the perils of offshore software quality assurance, hire the domestic beta testers right here in the US at Beta Breakers.