IT testers 30 years behind the times
Malaysia’s national software testing board (MSTB) has said that software testing in the region is 30 years behind the times.
According to MSTB president Mastura Abu Samah: “most software testers practitioners tend to carry out testing as if it is 1978, not 2008. Common practices lag best practices by 30 years. Common practices need to be raised to the next level of best practices as set by the International Software Testing Qualifications Board (ISTQB).”
“The conference will be a significant platform for the software testing arena whereby the industrial, professional and institutional sector will definitely benefit. The conference will offer participants rare insights into the software testing industry landscape, practices and opportunities brought by the many international and Malaysian speakers at this event. We shall also emphasise the relevance and importance of software testing towards Malaysian local capability building and national economic competitiveness,” .
By raising a local standards for the software industry, MSTB is to hold the country’s first certification forum – called the Software Testing Conference 2008 (SOFTEC 2008) –27-28 August 2008 at Berjaya Times Square Convention Centre, Kuala Lumpur.
The association said that globally, more than 80,000 ISTQB certified testers practice a common software-testing framework and nomenclature. This framework – the ISTQB certification programme -- was developed by worldwide groups of practitioners and consultants from more than 50 countries. MSTB runs the ISTQB accredited courses and examinations every quarter during 2008. Foundation Level courses will be conducted in May, August and November. Advanced Level courses will be conducted in August, with public exams held at the end of each courses.
MSTB said its long-term plan is to establish the Institute of Professional Software Engineers to bring value to the profession. This Institute shall support the fundamentals of the software profession and promote the sound professional software engineering practice.
“In 2007, Gartner Research (a world leader in information technology research and advisory) estimated the global software testing market at US$13 billion (RM42.46 billion), representing a huge opportunity for Malaysian companies to tap this market and offer their services locally and globally,” explained Mastura. “However, the supply of the human resources is not at par with the demand, due to the small number of certified professional testers in Malaysia, and lack of awareness about software testing as a career. It is MSTB’s vision and mission to raise the awareness and promote software testing as a respectable profession throughout the ICT industry in Malaysia, and promote the growth of IT software industry by elevating Malaysia’s profile as a leading testing outsourcing hub,” she added.
