What does SHIFT do? Conbini Digital Transformation
Industry: Retail / Logistics / E-Commerce / Transportation Company Size: 10,000+ employees
Services Provided:
Summary
Since 2018, this major Japanese convenience store chain has been advancing its digital transformation (DX) strategy. At the heart of that effort is its mobile app, designed not only to improve customer satisfaction and store operations, but also to collect data that supports new business ventures in marketing and financial services.
SHIFT has been supporting the client in app development through comprehensive test planning, execution, and project management—ensuring high quality across every release.
The Challenge
With a growing number of smartphone apps and increasingly complex functions like payments, coupons, and receipts, in-house testing became impractical due to the vast range of OS versions and devices. The company decided to outsource QA to a partner with strong expertise in large-scale mobile app testing and multi-vendor coordination.
They selected SHIFT early in the development process—not only to test features, but to understand the business context and participate as a strategic partner. According to the client, SHIFT became “less like a vendor and more like part of the team.”
Why SHIFT Was Chosen
Key reasons for selecting SHIFT included:
SHIFT also offered concrete, quantifiable proposals for improving test efficiency—something no other vendor had provided.
Supporting Continuous Releases
Since joining the project in January 2019, SHIFT has handled test case creation, execution, and PMO functions. With frequent app updates, SHIFT helps manage 15,000+ test cases per release, maintaining high quality under tight timelines.
The team not only performs UAT (User Acceptance Testing) but also supports:
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Ensuring UX and Functional Quality
SHIFT’s UAT team checks more than just functionality—they validate UX elements like screen transitions and responsiveness. For example, the app is required to display a barcode within 1 second of opening the home screen. These fine-tuned quality checks are essential for end-user satisfaction.
Impact of SHIFT’s Contribution
SHIFT’s ability to:
…have all earned high praise from the client.
Their approach to QA isn’t about scaling manpower—it’s about delivering the right quality at the right cost, with the foresight to adapt quickly.
Looking Ahead
The client’s goal is to evolve the app from a digital wallet to a complete replacement for a physical wallet, integrating receipts, coupons, and point cards in addition to payment. As more financial services (e.g., buy-now-pay-later, loans) are added, maintaining high quality and security becomes even more critical.
As part of their DX push, the app is not just a convenience tool but a core platform for generating business insights and launching new business models.
“We need SHIFT to expand beyond testing—to support broader areas of development and continue helping us deliver great service through the app.”
Interview conducted in October 2021
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