What do enterprise software developers think about software quality within their organizations? We asked SD Times subscribers, and the results may surprise you.

The research project was conducted in July 2012 by BZ Research (like SD Times, a division of BZ Media). Here’s what we learned:

Does your organization have separate development and test teams?
Some development and test/QA teams are separate, some are integrated: 34.6%
All test and development teams are integrated: 30.2%
All development teams and test/QA teams are separate: 32.7%
Don’t know: 2.4%

The net result was that 64.8% of respondents said that some or all of the test and development teams were integrated.

How many testers or test/QA professionals do you have at your company (or the largest company to whom you consult)?
5,000 or more: 2.9%
1,000-4,999: 3.9%
500-999: 2.5%
100-499: 5.9%
50-99: 7.8%
20-49: 11.3%
10-19: 9.3%
5-9: 15.2%
4 or fewer: 41.2%

We found that 34.3% said that they had more than 20 testers or QA professionals at their company.

What background do your test/QA managers and directors typically have?
Both development and test/QA: 53.9%
General IT background: 38.2%
Test/QA only: 23.5%
Development only: 21.6%
General management background: 21.1%
No particular background—we train them from scratch: 14.7%

Who is responsible for internally developed application performance testing and monitoring in your company?
Prior to Deployment
Software/application developers: 60.8%
Software/application development management: 52.8%
Testers: 50.3%
Testing management: 48.7%
IT top management (development) (VP or above): 36.7%
Systems administrators: 24.1%
Networking personnel: 21.5%
Line-of-business management: 21.1%
IT top management (non-development) (VP or above): 19.6%
Consultants: 19.3%
Networking management: 18.6%
Service providers: 16.1%

After Deployment
Software/application development management: 53.8%
Software/application developers: 47.7%
Systems administrators: 45.4%
Testers: 41.5%
Testing Management: 38.5%
IT top management (development) (VP or above): 34.6%
Networking personnel: 31.5%
IT top management (non-development) (VP or above): 30.8%
Line-of-business management: 30.8%
Networking management: 27.7%
Service providers: 23.8%
Consultants: 20.8%
#!
Does your company outsource any of its software quality assurance or testing?
Yes, all of it: 4.4%
Yes, some of it: 26.6%
No, none of it: 65.0%
Don’t know: 3.9%

This is tabulated as 31.0% outsourced some or all software testing.

Is your company developing and testing apps for mobile devices?
No, not developing/testing for mobile application development: 42.1%
Yes, mobile software for iPhone/iPad: 36.6%
Yes, mobile software for Android devices: 33.2%
Yes, mobile software in HTML5: 30.2%
Yes, mobile software for Windows Phone: 22.8%
Yes, mobile software for BlackBerry devices: 16.3%
Don’t know: 5.4%
Yes, software for other devices: 3.5%

This is tabulated as 57.9% were developing or testing mobile applications.

At what stage is your company—or companies that you consult—using the cloud for software testing?
We are using the cloud for software testing on a routine basis: 7.9%
We are experimenting with using the cloud for software testing: 17.3%
We are studying the technology but have not started yet: 26.7%
No plans to use the cloud for software testing: 39.6%
Don’t know: 8.4%

What is the state of software security testing at your company?
Software security is checked by the developers: 48.0%
Software security is checked by the test/QA team: 35.8%
Software security is checked by the IT/networking department: 29.9%
Software security testing is done for Web applications: 27.9%
Software security is checked by a separate security team: 25.5%
Software security testing is done for public-facing applications: 24.5%
Software security testing is done for in-house applications: 22.1%
We don’t have a specific security testing process: 18.6%
Software security is checked by contractors: 12.7%
Software security testing is not our responsibility: 3.4%

Those are the results. Do they match what you’ve seen at your company or within the industry?

Alan Zeichick is editorial director of SD Times. Read his blog at ztrek.blogspot.com.