Software and solutions specialist DVT has successfully automated a “smoke” test for a client using the popular SugarCRM software solution at its Global Testing Centre (GTC) in Cape Town.
As part of the project, DVT was also asked to validate the extraction, transformation and loading of historic data from another CRM system into SugarCRM.
Mario Matthee, chief operating officer of the DVT Global Testing Centre, says the fact that the GTC already uses a community edition of SugarCRM for internal test automation training purposes made the company a natural choice for the project.
“We use SugarCRM to give prospective clients a sneak peek of our capabilities when we execute basic CRM functionality across several desktops in parallel,” says Matthee. “Parallel execution of scripts enables us to execute more test scenarios within a shorter period of time, which comes in handy when we do smoke testing – also called sanity testing – to reveal simple failures severe enough to cripple a prospective software release.”
Sugar is a complete CRM solution that automates core sales, customer service and marketing processes, with a focus on the individual. Users get powerful functionality they’ll actually want to use, driving higher adoption and greater business insights.
“Because of our familiarity with the software, the team already had a good number of basic scripts in place before we even got all the client requirements,” he says, “and once we got them we were able to deliver meaningful results back to the client within a couple of days.”
Matthee says CRM systems play a very important role in today’s connected organisations, especially for sales teams, and any downtime can have a serious and often detrimental effect on business performance.
“A good CRM helps sales teams keep track of their customer interactions, manage their leads, and provide valuable insight into very specific customer data,” he says.
“Used in combination with powerful BI tools, CRM systems provide companies with a competitive edge by deriving real-time information about buying habits, customer demographics, marketing campaign successes, and other critical sales and marketing data.
“As with any complex system – particularly an ever-evolving system like business software – regular testing is essential,” he adds. “Professional test automation plays an important role to ensure the chosen software and software combinations are fully functional, especially following upgrades or major system changes.”
DVT’s GTC helps clients minimise the number of defects in their CRM software deployments by following a proven regression testing strategy in combination with DVT’s unique test automation framework. Along with SugarCRM, the company is planning to expand its test automation services to include other popular CRM systems like SalesForce and Microsoft Dynamics.
“We will be working closely with CloudSmiths to develop affordable and effective automated regression testing for SalesForce clients,” says Matthee.
CloudSmiths, a DVT company that recently merged with one of South Africa’s leading Gold Salesforce Consulting Partners, is already the country’s largest SalesForce specialist, with offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town.
