Testing Her Way Into A Bright Future In Technology: Meet Almas Khan Of V-Test

The IT field has a continuos churn of innovation. From new formats to new prototypes, invention is the name of the game. While the representation and the number of women taking up jobs in IT is steadily increasing, Almas Khan wants to break barriers. Born and educated in Pune, she is founder and COO of v-Test - a company that specialises in the testing industry of IT. Having previously worked in the fields of shipping, retail, and different roles in IT, a company in the same field felt like a natural fit to her.

The story of vTest.

"Logic comes naturally to me and that’s what inspired me to kickstart vTEST. Initially, my husband Shak and I were helping a friend’s mobile app company which made apps for kids and provided him with feedback. It was well appreciated  and Shak’s testing experience was readily available to shape up my idea into a professional testing services firm. We called it vTEST, derived from WE-TEST since it was only the 2 of us testing initially. We offer all types of testing-as-a-service (TAAS) to ensure web and mobile apps perform best. In our test lab, we maintain a variety of desktops, mobile tablets and mobile phones to cater to our client’s needs.  We work across multiple domains, industries, sectors and maintain complete ownership of quality. In our products section, we have developed proprietary test automation frameworks that enable us to test faster and launch apps at the earliest. We also provide test consultancy for external testing teams to deliver better and guide, mentor them on latest testing technologies and methodologies."

Testing Her Way Into A Bright Future In Technology: Meet Almas Khan Of V-Test

The women question in tech- are there enough of us?

"Yes, certainly and I do not see any obstacles in women not being able to contribute to the technology management sector in India or the world. Women leaders have been performing way better and delivering awesome products and services in corporate as well as startups. We need to introduce futuristic planning in early stages of our education wherein parents can plan for a kid’s career well in advance. With more awareness across all generations, we should be able to encourage more and more women to take up challenging and bigger tasks. It also needs to be noted that family support is always required for all of us to excel and grow."

Realise your dreams!

The challenges of starting up.

"The typical challenges existed such as fewer clients and difficulty in setting up proper sales-business development cycle. Our primary focus was to ensure that our existing clients received the best quality first rather than adding too many clients at a time. We focused on building our delivery process robust and transparent to our clients. I streamlined the sales-business development cycle and since then we have been flooded with inquiries from all across the world. Till date, vTEST has served 50+ clients that utilize our testing services and almost all of them return to us when they are looking to launch best quality software."

It’s ok even if your idea is not unique but focus on delivering it with best quality to your clients and users.

Your  business mantra?

"I believe in operating business with maximum transparency and finite goals. This mantra has helped us to define clear objectives for our team and also maintain excellent professional relationships with our clients. Being truthful and dedicated to one’s tasks is what helps you in the longer run. "

"Operate with maximum efficiency and finite goals"

Is passion enough to start a business?

" Yes, passion is important and believing in you is mandatory. If an entrepreneur has the passion and can run a self assessment of their own skills to achieve that passion , then there is no stopping. It should also be noted that you need to have the right team with you that dreams the same as no one is a super hero to achieve all alone."

I believe in operating business with maximum transparency and finite goals. This mantra has helped us to define clear objectives for our team and also maintain excellent professional relationship

The entrepreneur qualities of today. 

"Self discipline, patience and perseverance are the most important qualities for an entrepreneur to possess. Many times I have seen entrepreneurs that start their venture with a big bang however they lose their focus due to lack of perseverance and end up working on things that are less important or productive. Time management is the key to success. This is possible only by remaining focused on your objectives and priorities."

Startup advice?

"It’s ok even if your idea is not unique but focus on delivering it with best quality to your clients and users. They will retain you only if you continue to offer them world class product/service and will never think about alternatives. Continuous improvement is vital for service providers and clients will love it."

The future of vTEST

"vTEST has been growing extensively and we are looking to expand our presence in other geographical locations across the globe. We continue to improve and provide world class testing services to our clients. Recently, vTEST was listed in 20 Most Promising QA & Testing Service Providers of 2017 by Silicon India."