Testing beyond the software engineer’s role should be performed by an independent party, that will evaluate the software from various perspectives including its integration with other applications, user acceptance, configuration, installation, stress, failure and recovery.      The independent party designs the testing approach, performs the tests and collects results for anlysis and reporting.      Because testing results yield critical information about the application’s readiness, a rigorous methodology must be employed to assure discipline throughout the testing process. Discipline that can be applied directly toward the development of test cases, data sets, results documentation and reports.      In conjunction with testing, additional qualification in the form of Installation Qualification (IQ), Operational Qualification (OQ) and Performance Qualification (PQ) is performed prior to formal release of the software.