TestArmy

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Miiskin, a software development company.

What challenge were you trying to address with TestArmy?

We needed an IT services provider.

What was the scope of their involvement?

TestArmy provides and manages manual and automated testing resources with compliance and QA for our web- and app-based software for Android and iOS. Our internal developers finish our software products, and then we send them to TestArmy so they can do quality, security, and functionality testing.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with 2–3 members of their team, including software testers.

How did you come to work with TestArmy?

Someone referred them to us.

How much money have you invested in this partnership?

So far, we’ve spent $200,000–$1 million with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2018, and the engagement is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’ve been through around 150 development cycles with them, and the resources they’ve provided are extremely valuable, skilled, qualified, and fast. They’re great at aligning with our expectations and finding resources to accomplish our needs.

How did TestArmy perform from a project management standpoint?

We have excellent communication, they meet deadlines, and their management team is straightforward. Regarding tools, we use email, phone calls, Slack, and Jira.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The cost for the value they provide is outstanding as well as their efficiency, which is the main reason that we keep on working with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on — working with them is a perfect collaboration.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am leading the European expansion of our core company product, a banking-as-a-service platform. We have built an API which helps other businesses—small fintechs and large companies—as well as single developers to easily aggregate different financial services. We currently support more than 3,000 financial services in Germany and Austria; the goal is to expand to 34 other countries, and this is the context within which we’re collaborating with TestArmy.

What challenge were you trying to address with TestArmy?

We need to make sure that we can provide direct access to our technology and APIs, but the bigger challenge was testing the integrations we’re building with several teams across Europe. In order to validate that the new financial institution or service we’re aggregating is working well, we need to perform tests with someone who has a real account with a bank or a credit card provider. Getting access to such a testing network was a big challenge for us, but a company like TestArmy could provide this out of the box, along with full management of the test cycles.

What was the scope of their involvement?

TestArmy provides end-to-end functional testing. They support us with the recruitment of testers and the management of the test cycles, via a frontend we make available to them.

It’s an ongoing collaboration, so I suppose that there will be many other interesting things we’ll discover with TestArmy, but, for now, we’re focused on that.

What is the team dynamic?

We have been involved with at least 4 people from their side, but I’m not sure what the full size of the team is.

How did you come to work with TestArmy?

The process was organic—we went to Google and started searching for “crowd testing”. This was the keyword we used because I knew we actually wanted to have local testing groups. We looked at a couple of other crowd-testing agencies, as well as ones offering similar services, including ones in Berlin. We went with TestArmy because of their high engagement with the project. It was a non-typical set of requirements, namely testers who owned specific bank accounts, for example. TestArmy also had flexibility, and were loose in terms of offering a proof-of-concept project, as well as on how we would organize the cycle and how they would report results. TestArmy also put us in contact with testers directly.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost has been below $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with TestArmy in June 2017.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

One thing we are measuring is the maintenance cost for each financial system being aggregated via API. Compared to costs per financial source in Germany (where we have an expensive setup in terms of getting tests done), they’ve definitely helped us decrease the number.

Before using TestArmy, we required a month of work for fixing an issue and going back to test it again. Because of how they’ve helped us streamline feedback from testers, we’ve reduced this process to 7 work days. It’s a huge improvement on our side.

How did TestArmy perform from a project management standpoint?

The reports are very detailed, including videos and valuable technical information. The engagement involved a big plan on our site, and the responsiveness of the project manager on their side has been perfect. They kept us up-to-date on the recruitment process of different testing groups, and it was really easy to get in touch and setup meetings. The whole project management flow makes it easy to actually plan test cycles. One of the biggest blockers for us was being able to plan for cycles in the future, and to get that part streamlined between tester feedback, fixing issues and testing them again.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The personal touch made the difference. Our use case is treated in-depth and with care, compared with other companies, where we were given generic options. The personalization is key.

Are there any areas they could improve?

So far, we haven’t had any problems with TestArmy.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO of Explain Everything. We provide a free form creation tool that works like an interactive whiteboard. It’s usually mostly in education. We are making inroads in the enterprise market as well. Our tool can create explanatory movies or online lectures, and is best suited for presentations, lectures, student projects, and things like that.

What challenge were you trying to address with TestArmy?

We have a portal that stores presentations and projects created using our app. We wanted TestArmy to test the security and vulnerability of our portal. If you’re doing something with an internal team, it’s better to have an external team testing this, especially when it comes to data security. Nowadays there are many problems with websites not being secure. While we were following all best practices while setting up our portal, we wanted to have somebody test that externally.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We test for security every time we do a major upgrade to our portal.  We give TestArmy the URL and the description of the app.  They’re trying to break it and hack into it using their tools. Then they give us a report for what they’ve been able to accomplish and why so that we can fix whatever it is. When we fix the issues, they retest it, and then we are safe. We’ve only been using them for security and vulnerability testing of our website on a yearly basis. 

How did you come to work with TestArmy?

They are from the same city as us. The companies within the region usually know each other and know who is doing what. We knew that they do testing and security testing. We contacted them. We did some research of other companies, but TestArmy looked the best to us and had the most experience.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $5,000-$10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in August 2015 and will be entering into a third engagement in August or September of this year. They tested the portal in the summers of both 2015 and 2016, and we’ll do additional retests again this summer.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

They provide a full report of what tools were used for testing. For example, for part of the website, we are using the service that has a list of the newest vulnerabilities and they went through that list. We have a full report of what has been tested and whether vulnerabilities were found or not. For other things, they’re also providing how many security holes were present. We always have to fix them all. The KPI here would be the number of vulnerabilities found versus the number of vulnerabilities fixed. Then the retest shows whether they were fixed. After TestArmy, we never had any issues with security or vulnerability. We are really happy with the results. They are a good service.

How did TestArmy perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed very well. They have a clear start date and end date. The deliverables were always clear to us, as well as the retest dates. Both in terms of meeting deadlines and general time spent on the project, they are excellent. We communicated over phone and Skype. We also used our own tool, Explain Everything, because it can be used for communication. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

During personal meetings with them, I had a good impression that they were very thoughtful and really knew what they’re doing. I’m a long time tech entrepreneur and I can sense whether someone is knowledgeable or just talking nonsense. They really deliver.

IPC Europe is an independent non-profit making organisation owned by Subway® Franchisees in Europe. Whom manage supply of Subway® approved food, packaging and equipment, but also offer a wide range of support of commercial services and technology solutions, such as Subway® Loyalty Program & App.

After supporting a 10-year-old existing Loyalty App and Program, strategically the business had agreed to transform the current Mobile App, Website and program in the current European markets in terms of look & feel, as it was seen as a key customer and business initiative in terms of engagement and to better compete in the QSR/Retail space. This meant having to deliver an MVP product without losing any of the key existing features, but ultimately the focus was to produce a complete new UX and design.

The scale of the project was for 7 key regions where the program was existing but also to ensure futureproofing the product for longer term strategy initiatives. Knowing the roll out plan would span a minimum of 6 months would have to take an iterative approach and focus on one market at a time. Overall the project was a re-skin of branding but also improving the UX for end User across a large scale customer base.

We at IPC Europe had worked with TestArmy previously on significant rollout projects for 3 markets and the updates of the platforms to support GDPR. We had an existing relationship which was important now undertaking the largest project in terms of scale and complexity the team had most probably undertaken for 10 years.

From a business perspective one of real importance for the range of stakeholders and for the Franchisees and Stores. Ensuring a quality end product for all the European consumers and market. The scale and magnitude of the task looking back was underestimated considering the langue, complexity, and impacted business teams.

We successfully rolled out the Mobile App and platforms in a timely manner with very positive consumer and business feedback. The way in which TestArmy works and integrates into our internal project is what stands out. The daily and weekly engagement with the business project calls, daily IM communication with Slack and being able to directly work in the scrum team with bug raising.

This level of team work along with the ability to add value with feedback through UAT of the platforms is a huge positive. We encountered multiple delays, issues with the designs and very last minute changes which meant the scheduled resources hand to be stood down at last minute this flexibility and support is invaluable.

We carry out internal testing, however having a added range of devices to validate test feedback but also level of assurance we receive from a group of experts Testers gives the senior stakeholders in the business and added level of confidence which is crucial when we consider the quality assurance for the end result. The only challenge at times is the desired framework or layout of feedback within our ticketing tool for the development teams.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of projects at Resolver. We assist consumers in raising complaints against a company they’ve had an issue with by providing them information about their rights and guiding them through the complaint process. The service is free to consumers, but we also offer a set of enterprise products for companies and regulators that want to resolve consumer complaints.

What challenge were you trying to address with TestArmy?

They’ve been helping us with a collaborative decision-making product aimed at regulators, courts, and ombudsmen. We brought TestArmy onboard to save time and ensure that deployments go smoothly.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They provide us with automated testing resources. Their developer participates in regular stand-ups with our team. We deploy new code each week, so while our team is working on development, they’re writing the automated tests for it. Once everything’s ready, they run the tests overnight and flag any issues for our team to review.

What is the team composition?

We currently have one developer who works full-time with us, but we’re looking to expand our use of their services.

How did you come to work with TestArmy?

Our CTO received a referral from a colleague, so we looked into their services and found that they were a good fit for our needs.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in October 2017 and we’re still working together.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

They’ve integrated really well with our development team and they’re good at proactively solving problems. They’ll independently make suggestions on how we can change our approach and get better results. We hired them to give us confidence that our product would be reliable when we launched it in March 2018 and, due to their QA work, we haven’t had any major issues in the six months since then.

How did TestArmy perform from a project management standpoint?

We manage their individual tester who works with our team, but their administrative team is always helpful when we need to get in touch with them about contracts and scheduling.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Integrating testers and developers can be a bit tricky, but the tester we have is a core member of our team. He takes initiative and communicates with the rest of the team to solve problems.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’ve realized that we need to have more discussion upfront about the strategic approach before they begin writing the tests. We initially went for expediency, but it’s become clear on both sides that we’re better off having those planning conversations at the start.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Know what you hope to get out of the engagement and fully integrate their developer into your team if you can. They’re very willing to engage with you as a partner as long as you communicate effectively.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a senior software developer for Rendra, a company in the building industry. We provide entrepreneurs with 3D CAD [computer-aided design] models for their sites for office buildings, hospitals, and so on.

What challenge were you trying to address with TestArmy?

We reached out to them because we needed to test our software on a large number of different Android and iOS devices. Instead of attempting to buy all these devices and perform tests ourselves, we wanted to use a company which already had most of them available to offload our task. 

What was the scope of their involvement? 

The purpose of the test, at least in the beginning, was to discover device-specific issues which we had no way of detecting. Gradually, we have been offloading more and more general testing to TestArmy, as well. They provide manual testing based on detailed test scripts that we provide. TestArmy also undergoes general testing and has gotten to know our software. They detect changes and find regression bugs we may introduce while implementing new features. We don’t undergo any automated testing.

How did you come to work with TestArmy?

I was not in the loop initially. Another employee got in contact with TestArmy, but I’m not sure about the selection process.

How much have you invested with TestArmy?

This information is confidential. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with TestArmy in November of 2016. The collaboration is ongoing.

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We keep track of the number of critical bugs being discovered and how these numbers evolved since starting to work with TestArmy. I wouldn’t say that we have fewer bugs, but we’re discovering them at earlier stages than before. We do have fewer major bugs than before. The severity has decreased.

How did TestArmy perform from a project management standpoint?

We allocate time with TestArmy’s testers every week and communicate directly with them. Whenever we’ve had contact with their project managers, the meetings have been quick and efficient. I think that the communication has been straightforward. TestArmy’s team is competent, and they produce quality work.

What did you find most impressive about TestArmy?

We appreciate that they provide good testers who are competent in working with complex software. They have a technical background and can provide our developers with useful information on how to solve issues.

Are there any areas TestArmy could improve?

In general, I’m very satisfied with the quality of work provided by TestArmy, but the list of available mobile and tablet devices could be even more extensible and up to date. Having new devices ready when they reach the market would be a great plus for us.

Please describe your organization.

I am a world-renowned, award-winning musician that performs at private, corporate events and festivals.

What business challenge were you trying to address with TestArmy? 

I reached out to TestArmy to be sure that my two websites were fully functional and error free. I was looking for a company to verify my website was error free and user-friendly to help me better connect with potential clients and fans.

Please describe the scope of the work and TestArmy's involvement in greater detail. 

TestArmy was very proactive in helping me to test my websites. They were present from start to finish. TestArmy started testing as soon as we developed both websites and they also conducted acceptance tests at the end of our development. Plus, once everything was finished, TestArmy conducted retests to let me rest assured that everything was functioning properly.

How did you come to work with TestArmy?

After doing some research, I really liked the fact that TestArmy stressed their commitment to building a relationship with me rather than just seeing me as a paying client. I was also impressed by the kinds of clients they have previously partnered with.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

I spent around $5,000.

What is the status of this engagement? 

TestArmy completed their engagement with my developers. The whole process took just under 2 months, one month during the development and then a couple of weeks for acceptance tests and retests.

What are the results of the project, and are there any statistics or metrics you can share?

The project was just completed so I do not have any immediate metrics to share. However, the testers from TestArmy were in constant communication with my developers and made suggestions on what things could be changed to create a more user-friendly experience. I believe that the open communication between my developers and TestArmy helped deliver the best websites possible.

My clients and partners are impressed with both websites and I have not yet heard any problem on either site.

How did TestArmy perform from a project management standpoint?

TestArmy dedicated a team to my project that consisted of 4 full-time testers plus another 20 testers to replicate my potential clients. They stayed in constant communication with my developers and me and were always ready when we had questions or concerns about a specific feature.

What distinguishes TestArmy from other providers?

I really appreciated the fact that TestArmy was not only efficient, but also open throughout the entire process. The questions my developers had were always quickly answered and their test reports enabled my developers to work in a more efficient manner. I think the fact that they were so involved with my project really proves that they treat each project as if it was their own, and that isn’t normal with other companies.

Is there anything TestArmy could have improved or done differently?

I can't think of anything.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Ware are a global digital agency that deals mostly with pharmaceutical clients. We provide services related to digital marketing, website and mobile app development, and so on. Our headquarters are in London, and we have offices in Poland, Italy, and New York. Our headcount is over 100 employees, and we work with various external suppliers. I am the head solutions architect of the company.

What challenge were you trying to address with TestArmy?

We had a high volume of websites to be tested against designs and requirements. We needed someone to do this for us.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We have worked with TestArmy on 30–40 websites so far. Our most common task is layout testing. This involves making comparisons against the design files we provide—for instance, if the built website is identical to the initial design. TestArmy also runs browser compatibility checks, looking at a number of browsers and devices which should be compatible with a particular website. They use physical devices to check for any layout issues or bugs. They also run some standard HTML and CSS validations using our internal tools in order to verify that the work is compliant with W3C standards. TestArmy checks follow-up emails for us, testing our templates in Outlook and the iOS email client. TestArmy also looks at our Veeva CRM [customer relationship management] presentations to see if the content follows our designs. These are environments through which medical representatives can show presentations.

Initially, our collaboration was on-demand. We sent TestArmy tasks for which they provided resources. Since November 2016, we changed the model and have a dedicated team of four QA engineers from TestArmy. We make sure that they have enough work and schedule their tasks. TestArmy is integrated into our team in several ways. Aside from using our Slack channels, they also use our internal JIRA instance for raising bugs and defining tasks. TestArmy is still a remote resource for us, so we work out of different offices.

How did you come to work with TestArmy?

I found TestArmy through the recommendation of a colleague. She had worked with TestArmy for a previous company. The relationship worked well so we didn't consider any other candidates.

How much have you invested with TestArmy?

The cost of TestArmy's work has been around $8,000 per month. In total, we’ve paid $80,000 for their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with TestArmy around April 2016. We still work with them.

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We have generally looked at our clients' satisfaction level and the number of issues reaching our clients. TestArmy's performance is good, and everyone has been happy so far. There were some issues initially, but they were mostly due to a lack of experience with our environment and project types. Most of those have been sorted out by now. Our general perception is that TestArmy is an extension of our internal team.

How did TestArmy perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicate with TestArmy's team in English. There is usually a project manager on our side who works directly with their team members and sets deadlines. TestArmy will usually hit those deadlines, notifying us about any potential problems that may hold them back. TestArmy has senior team leaders who coordinate the work, so, if there are any issues, there will be someone whom we can go to and ask for help.

What did you find most impressive about TestArmy?

TestArmy reacts quickly to any issues and comes up with solutions. They also have senior resources who are experienced with general processes around digital. We've used TestArmy's expertise to improve our internal processes. The team which works for us can operate in different time zones, which has helped us handle global relations with foreign clients in the US, Europe, and Asia.

Are there any areas TestArmy could improve?

The technical understanding of underlying technologies around our websites and applications could be better. It would help TestArmy's team understand what our bugs are, as well as the reasons and implications around them. I know that TestArmy will be providing training for the team.

Please describe your organization.

We provide smart-packaging solutions using the RFID and NFC capabilities in smartphones, in order to provide communication between the customer and the product.

What business challenge were you trying to address with TestArmy?

We needed to test our system for security issues at the request of one of our clients.

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

TestArmy provided testing for our app, Talkin' Things, as well as for our web panel, talkinthings.com. Specifically, they tried to copy our NFC tags and looked at the communication between the smart devices and our cloud. It was quite a difficult project.

How did you come to work with TestArmy?

I found TestArmy online while looking for testing companies. I compared three offers and chose TestArmy because they had the best portfolio, and provided the best communication.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The cost of TestArmy's work was around €5,000. [$5,200]

What is the status of this engagement?

We had our first conversations with TestArmy in September 2016, and the testing process started in December. The project took 1-2 months to complete.

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

The communication between our company and theirs was good, and TestArmy delivered the project in the right time. As a deliverable, they gave us a full summary of what we should do to improve our system. TestArmy then did another series of tests after we implemented those changes. Our system is in good order at the moment, so the project was successful.

How did TestArmy perform from a project management standpoint?

TestArmy assigned a project manager from their side. We had a number of calls and emails during the project, as well as one meeting. The communication was sufficient, and everything was delivered according to our timeline.

What distinguishes TestArmy from other providers?

I appreciated the communication between our teams, as well as TestArmy's fast work.

Is there anything TestArmy could have improved or done differently?

Everything was okay.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Respondent 1: We are a charity organization focused on yearly corporate running events which take place in Poland. We have around 5,000 participants in Wrocław and 2,000 in Warsaw. I am the founder and chief executive officer of the organization. I am in charge of organizing the events.

Respondent 2: I am the IT director and events manager of the company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Testarmy?

Respondent 2: We needed security and functionality testing for our website. The website is used for registering competition participants, so it has many forms and functionalities which needed to be secure and operational.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Respondent 2: Testarmy provided security as well as functional and load (or performance) testing. They ensure that the site could handle 2,000–3,000 concurrent users. Testarmy's specialist maintained contact with us online. We've had three iterations for each type of test. Testarmy also fixed any bugs that were identified.

How did you come to work with Testarmy?

Respondent 2: I found three options when I googled security and functional testing companies. Testarmy offered the best price and a collaboration model.

How much have you invested with Testarmy?

Respondent 2: This information is confidential.

What is the status of this engagement?

Respondent 1: We started working with Testarmy in March 2014.

Respondent 2: The work was finished in May. We are planning a new project with Testarmy in 2017 after we've updated our website.

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Respondent 1: We are satisfied with Testarmy.

Respondent 2: Testarmy tested our platform and fixed any bugs, achieving a functional result.

How did Testarmy perform from a project management standpoint?

Respondent 2: We maintained communication through JIRA, Skype, Slack, email, and phone. We've had a long period for performing all our tests, so there were no missed deadlines.

What did you find most impressive about Testarmy?

Respondent 2: I've appreciated the direct contact with Testarmy's specialists.

Are there any areas Testarmy could improve?

Respondent 1: No, everything was good.