Macmillan Publishing

TestIT provides Macmillan publishing with an outsourced software testing facility that ensures that its own in-house developed software is fit for purpose. Macmillan provides an Internet-based academic publication facility, including both hard copies and electronic books. It is imperative to ensure that both front and back-end transactions are robust in this demanding and ever-changing marketplace.

In the very competitive marketplace of internet sales and publications, it is important that wherever possible costs are driven down while still ensuring the quality and correctness of software products. TestIT, using its ISO9001:2008 Quality Management System, provides Macmillan with an outsourced testing facility to ensure that changes or

improvements to its public facing, website-based publications and electronic books facility is maintained to a very high standard. What is of particular value is ensuring that manning levels are maintained such that Macmillan's remain confident that testing and validation of the critical software components is thoroughly and

diligently carried out. By outsourcing this function to TestIT, the staffing pool can be tuned to ensure that wherever possible costs are kept to a minimum and confidence and continuation of service is maintained to the highest standard.

TestIT's involvement is typically through the whole life-cycle of a software development project.

There is little value in prescriptive testing against a sometimes sketchy and seemingly always ambiguous set of requirements. TestIT's analysts provide Macmillan's with a comprehensive Software Assurance solution to meet their demanding needs. This typically begins with the inception and development of a Software Requirements Specification (SRS). This involves everyone involved in the project, including the internal customer who works closely with TestIT's analysts to develop a comprehensive and as best possible a fully-correct Engineering Specification. This document is maintained throughout the life-cycle of the project (using TestIT's secure Engineering Workspace) and any changes are seamlessly integrated. Formal Test Plans are then developed and, when approved, auditable tests are executed in a quarantined and controlled environment.

The formal tests are able to demonstrate that the product is fully compliant, and always include a proactive strategy to aggressively and diligently drive out any weaknesses or inconsistencies.

In this way, confidence and assurance can be built in to the project right from the start and projects delivered on time, on schedule and, as best possible, defect free.