The Foundation of DevOps Excellence: Quality Engineering

Numerous studies indicate that the adoption of DevOps practices remains a dynamic challenge for the majority of software development teams, with merely 11% reporting full DevOps maturity as of 2022. Successfully navigating this transformation necessitates the establishment of comprehensive metrics that provide clarity on individual roles throughout the organization. With this objective in mind, Google introduced the DORA (DevOps Research and Assessment) metrics, offering development teams a straightforward means to gauge their DevOps maturity.

Fernando Mattos, the Director of Product Marketing at Mabl, a low-code test automation platform, explained, "DORA metrics capture the productivity and stability of development pipelines, factors that can significantly impact an organization's capacity to innovate and maintain customer satisfaction. If an organization faces challenges in balancing increased deployment frequency with reducing change failure rates, quality engineering plays a pivotal role in bridging that gap."

DORA metrics were originally formulated in 2014 to empower development organizations in recognizing the strategies that distinguish elite teams and, in turn, assist more companies in advancing their DevOps practices. This underscores the connection between engineering efficiency and the attainment of business objectives. By accelerating the introduction of new features, expediting defect resolution, and delivering an enhanced customer experience, the outcomes are increased business performance, elevated conversion rates, and reduced customer churn.

Mattos emphasized that Mabl regards test automation as a crucial component within the delivery pipeline. He explained, "Two key metrics impacted here are change lead time and change failure rate. Change lead time measures the duration from code commitment to production release, encapsulating a multifaceted process." He cited an example of a team that has streamlined its code review procedures and automated the entire pipeline but still necessitates testing before releasing a feature to production. "A comprehensive software testing strategy encompasses unit testing, UI testing, API testing, end-to-end testing, and even non-functional tests like accessibility and performance. These are indispensable in reducing change failure rates. However, if the testing process consumes excessive time, it extends the change lead time, negatively affecting the business. Consequently, all improvements made in other aspects of the process become ineffective."

"By integrating quality engineering and specific test automation," Mattos continued, "development teams can abbreviate the time required for comprehensive testing and optimize their outcomes."

Mattos also stressed the critical importance of ensuring that test coverage is centered on the customer experience, which in turn diminishes the change failure rate. He remarked, "Many customers we interact with possess extensive test coverage, but it is detached from the customer experience. They believe they are testing comprehensively, yet when the software is released to production, defects still surface, especially when integrating with third-party tools, which is challenging to address with conventional test automation tools."

According to Mattos, Mabl is dedicated to assisting teams in constructing end-to-end continuous testing that prioritizes the customer experience. He explained, "Customers focus on the experience they encounter when making purchase decisions – encompassing both functional and non-functional aspects. Connecting to usage and metric tools, comprehending the most crucial customer journeys, these flows must attain extensive coverage." Mabl aids development organizations in establishing and expanding a quality engineering practice that aligns with DORA improvements and elevated customer experiences, leading to positive impacts on overall business objectives. "When your team adopts an automated testing practice that reflects the customer experience, deployments become more frequent without introducing defects. DORA metrics improve, and customers express greater satisfaction."