Users consider IBM Rational Quality Manager to be a very valuable web-based collaboration tool.
Throughout the entire development process, the solution provides users with:
Test artifact management
Test construction
Test planning
The solution helps users:
Share information seamlessly
Use automation to accelerate project schedules
Report on metrics for informed release decisions
IBM Rational Quality Manager includes every role:
Test manager
Test architect
Lab manager
Tester
Test lead
Various roles outside the established test organization
The top industries that use IBM Rational Quality Manager include:
Information Technology and Services
Computer Software
Financial Services
Government Administration
Insurance
Hospital and Healthcare
Telecommunications
Banking
Retail
Defense and Space
Some of the solution’s benefits that users like most include:
Seamless integration with IBM RTC and IBM RM
Can be integrated with IBM Rational automation, performance, and security testing tools, which provides an easy way to schedule or execute the scripts from the RQM console. Results are linked with test plans.
Provides a lab management facility, which helps to maintain, allocate, and monitor testing assets like test servers, devices, etc.
Offers an easy way to manage multiple test execution cycles.
Some of the solution’s features that users find most helpful are:
Customizable design and construction: Each test case can be defined. Every test case contains a robust text editor, which can include background data concerning the test case. Test cases can include links to developmental requirements and items. They can also include test artifacts, such as test scripts, test case execution processes, and test plans. Test cases can also be integrated with test suites.
Intuitive reporting: The solution has predefined reports so users can gain a comprehensive status of all their projects. IBM Rational Quality Manager also includes Development Intelligence and Rational Insight features, allowing for additional reports that can be customized. Each of these help users discover test artifacts relationships, requirements in the traceability view, as well as development artifacts.
Test planning: With the solution’s exhaustive test planning, users can drive all activity through each component of the project’s lifecycle.
Top test plan tasks include (but are not limited to):
Definition of test and business objectives.
Evaluate the size of the test effort.
Define different environments to test and develop test configurations.
Develop entrance criteria, exit criteria, and overall quality goals.
Create a review and approval process for the test plan and/or individual test cases.
View real-time test progress.
Security: With its IBM AppScan Tester, IBM Rational Quality Manager is capable of protecting against attack threats and data breaches. This can help achieve higher quality and more secure applications with greater positive outcomes at a very reasonable competitive cost.
Collaboration: Data can be shared among teams with the solution’s Collaboration Lifecycle Management (CLM). Additionally, users can assign tasks and track one another’s progress. Whatsmore is they can circulate their work and can view input from each reviewer as it is received. Users are also able to lock artifacts, restricting others from editing them.
Governance: Users appreciate that IBM Rational Quality Manager can ensure that they are in compliance with industry, department, corporate, regional, as well as government regulations and standards. The solution can correlate test processes and also generate records of testing results and project history in order to comply with auditing processes.
As with any solution, IBM Rational Quality Manager also has its drawbacks.
Users mention that the user interface and user experience could be improved.
There is no defect management.
It doesn’t provide built-in functionality for requirements. Requirement modules need to be purchased separately.
Users feel integration with automated scripts should be easier.
Some features depend on IBM RTC.
It does not have a query builder like in RTC, where a user could define its criteria and see the results easily. There is some mechanism to filter the results while you browse test plans and test cases. However, users say it is not very user friendly.
We create test cases, and then we need to plan a new task plan feature from the existing task case file and execute the test results, which will be saved in RQM. So that is how we are using the tool every day. So if one day we go to the office and find out we have been signed out, we cannot do anything.
Software Engineering Director at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
Apr 13, 2020
We use it to manage the testing. We have both manual and automated testing and we have many teams in DHL IT services that are designing some solutions. It's part of the whole life cycle. So they implement that and then test it. We adopt more and more Agile or DevOps practices, like Scrum or Kanban, and as a part of that, the work which is implemented is tested. Historically we did a lot more manual tasks but more and more we are automating the tests and using the automation. We trigger some test automation tools from Rational Quality Manager. For example, we use Selenium or Micro Focus Quick Test Professional, or QTP. These aren't typical but we also trigger integration tests. For example, the Rational Integration Tester is triggered by RQM as well.
Senior Analyst at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Jun 18, 2020
We are a consultancy and we use this solution to create a testing plan, that includes test cases, for our clients. It is part of a larger suite of tools that includes Rational Functional Tester, which helps to automate the process.
IBM Rational has the RFT, which is rational functional testing. We do test automation with rational functional testing. So after we do that, we can put in all the code, then I can build it, then put all the test cases, and put all the build code for the shared location. And then rational that shared location means that RQM has access to the shared location. So, when we execute, if a test case i...
Project Manager and test manager at Venturous Solutions
Feb 20, 2020
Currently, the user interface needs to be more user-friendly. In one of IBM's main competitors, Quality Center, the options are much more straightforward than what is offered in IBM. IBM's platform is too complicated and should be simple like Quality Center's. The integration and enhancement features need to be across all the testing tools and there needs to be integration between them. The solution should simplify the import or export as well as support multiple extensions. Overall, the solution is not user-friendly, and you need a very technical person on it in order to run it properly.
Software Engineering Director at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
Apr 13, 2020
I think it's fine from a performance perspective but usability is something that needs improvement. It might be because of the complexity. They introduce some entities before people learn how these entities link to each other. It's not intuitive. Tools like JIRA qTest are much more intuitive, for example. Quality Center is simple as well.
