Post on 11-Apr-2017
transcript
90 days to make a difference
Who am I?
I am a seasoned QA professional with over 20 years experience across industry sectors including
many well known Blue Chip companies
Why am I here?
I want to help your business to achieve more and work more effectively – I want to make a difference
How?
Engage
• Take the time to understand the specific business areas - see what they do
• Locate the subject matter experts - learn• Talk to developers, testers, BA’s and people in
the business – gauge the environment• Add value
Understand The Company
• Develop a good understanding of what your company produces and how this is being delivered
Address Constraints
In every endeavour constraints exist and must be addressed:• Resource – make the best of what you have
• Time – find more efficient ways to deliver
• Cost – work effectively within a budget
• Organisational change/adaptability – support the business to help them through change
Examine Risk Areas
Using a risk based test approach:• Finance – disruption of incoming/outgoing
funds• Statutory reporting• Data protection • Loss of reputation – failed campaigns, failed IT
systems• Failure of service delivery
What does risk cost?
In 2012 an untested update was made to RBS’s payment application causing chaos to thousands of people.
It cost RBS £125 million.
Testing focus
Do a test review:1) Check that there is a defined approach to
testing (unit, functional, non functional) 2) Check that it is repeatable 3) Check that it is measurable 4) Document (electronic format) how testing is
achieved – manual or automation scripts
Review Current Testing
• Review code test coverage • Confirm that unit testing is taking place• Review testing practices - is BDD*, TDD** being used?• Quality issues often start at the code level, and additional
rigour may be required around the delivery process• Review test scripting practice• Review what exploratory testing is done• Review BAU*** testing
*BDD Behavioural Driven Development, **TDD Test Driven Development, BAU – Business As Usual
Review Business As Usual
Review current testing for BAU• Work with users to understand the applications• Understand how HR, CRM, Finance and other
applications are supported and tested• Create a regression test set if one does not exit
(create scenarios and scripts)• Idenitfy a clear process for upgrading
applications
Using a BDD Test Approach
• Behaviour-driven development is a way to focus on how the system is used and to tie testing to a more real world definition that people understand:
• Given that a situation is true• When I take an action• Then an event takes place
Structure for Stories• Title (one line describing the story)• • Narrative:• As a [role]• I want [feature]• So that [benefit]• • Acceptance Criteria: (presented as Scenarios)• • Scenario 1: Title• Given [context]• And [some more context]...• When [event]• Then [outcome]• And [another outcome]...
Executable Specifications
• Turn requirements/stories into executable specifications using tools if appropriate
• This can be achieved via constructs like Cucumber and Gherkin where stories can be turned into automated tests in BDD format
Environments and Deployment
Make sure that there is a suitable process defined to allow easy deployment of code andenvironments for testing and production
Build and CI Process
• Review the build process to confirm it is robust
• Clarify whether Continuous Integration (CI) is appropriate
• Start to gauge the quality standard
Work with people to solve issues
Help people to focus on the job they are good at:• Redress the balance of testing work
undertaken by BA’s and Developers
Project delivery
How are requirements turned into deliveries?• Look at an agile approach to delivering
requirements – small pieces of the puzzle• Look at the advantages of working as
collaborators (Dev, Test, BA) working as one group – scrum based approach
Track Defects
It is important to record and resolve issuesfound in testing: • Log• Track• Resolve• Report Metrics
There will always be bugs!
Automate regression testing
• Turn manual test scripts into automation where appropriate
• Automate repetitive tasks where possible• Build automation as part of delivering code• Determine what level of quality suits your
organisation – get it to work with you and not against you
• Use continuous integration to verify the product
Make Sure Exceptions Are Logged
How are exceptions handled in applications? • Confirm that exceptions are being logged• Investigate whether a monitoring process is
required• Review support processes to confirm they
provide required information
Summary• Create a Test Strategy • Review unit level and functional testing, test scripting• Review BAU• Apply BDD, TDD test practice• Apply agile practice to requirement delivery• Rebalance testing work across the teams• Resolve issues around deployment/environments/build• Use test automation where appropriate• Track issues and resolve – Exception Handling• Use testing tools to assist in testing API/GUI/Packages• Work as a team to deliver a better product
Holistic
QA as a function does far more than test code. • It looks at why things are done• It looks at how people do those things• It looks to increase productivity and decrease
errors• It is an essential part of the SDLC• It looks at the whole to determine where
things can be improved