Outsourcing software and performance testing

Teletext has outsourced their testing services to independent testing consultancy, Acutest. Under the deal, Acutest will take responsibility for delivering testing and assurance services as well as helping improve the way these services are used throughout the development lifecycle.
Acutest first began work with Teletext on a single performance testing assignment in 2005, during which they quickly got to grips with what was required and also introduced improvements to the underlying testing processes.

“In recent years, we have used a mix of in house resources, contractors and external testing companies to service our testing needs. When we first brought in Acutest, their approach and services set them apart from what we had come to expect from the independent testing market,” explained Bill Welsh, Head of Development Operations at Teletext. “We were particularly impressed with their performance and load testing services and the way they helped us align our testing with our business and technical risks in a string of new releases in 2005.”

Barry Varley, CEO, Acutest commented: “We’re delighted to have been selected by Teletext to provide their testing services. There is a growing trend in the UK to outsource testing to independent specialists, as opposed to the large outsource deals which dominated the last decade and embraced both development and testing. We’ve developed a range of client side assurance services to help our customers get the benefits of their technology-enabled change faster and we are looking forward to implementing these for Teletext.”

“We chose Acutest ahead of the competition for two key reasons. Firstly, they had already proven themselves and we knew we could work well with them. Secondly, the approach they proposed for the outsourced testing service demonstrated they had listened to our needs and come up with a unique proposition. Acutest have combined a consistently high standard of service with the great flexibility we need,” said Nigel Beighton, CTO at Teletext. “Testing is a strategically important part of our development process. The impact of this outsource service is already providing improvements in other areas of our development as well the management information we have during assignments. “