Many corporate information technology (IT) departments may be unprepared for the accelerating pace of change in business software applications, according to new research by Original Software, a global software-testing solutions provider. Original Software conducted an online survey earlier this year, canvassing IT personnel at large and small organisations around the world about the role of software-testing technology in their businesses.

When asked 'How confident are you that your software applications change quickly enough to achieve your organization’s goals?' the majority of respondents showed ambivalence, with 39% expressing a position that is 'Neither confident nor unconfident.' In addition, nearly two thirds of respondents reported the performance of their testing tools is either 'Average,' 'Poor' or 'Very Poor' when considering the ability to support applications that change frequently.

Interpreting the study’s results, Colin Armitage, CEO of Original Software commented: 'Analysts estimate there will be as many as 200 billion apps downloaded to smartphones, tablets and other devices by 2017.

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'Many of those apps will be processing financial transactions or e-commerce purchases for businesses and consumers, generating waves of changes to enterprise applications of all kinds. How can corporate IT organisations cope with this roiling deluge of new software when they don’t seem to be paying enough attention to the challenges of quality control and have little faith in the applicability of their software testing technology?'

Companies whose IT departments struggle to deliver the frequent change required by internal or customer-facing applications risk higher operating costs, lower productivity and competitive disadvantage, Armitage explained.

'Leveraging new technologies, such as mobile apps for retailers and financial services firms, is a smart move,' he elaborated. 'But cutting corners in quality assurance processes to keep up with changes in software is a risky proposition.'

To ensure the quality of new and upgraded applications, Armitage offered IT teams three tips: 'test quickly and often, test in coordination and collaboration with your business users, and then re-test before going live with any application.'