“Software Testing To Be or Not To Be” Conference of the Association for Software Testing July 15, 2009“To be or not to be, that is the question”– William Shakespeare’s HamletNeha Thakur

ObjectiveTo identify the various stakeholders, their involvement and to strategies the communication and the engagement needs of stakeholdersTo discuss various advantages, challenges and appropriate strategies

CoverageIntroductionAdvantages of identifying and involving stakeholdersStakeholder analysisStakeholder engagement and communicationChallengesThe appropriate strategy

Need for testing:Only testing can demonstrate that quality has been achieved.Software Testing is an empirical investigation conducted to provide stakeholders with information about the quality of the product or service under test, with respect to the context in which it is intended to operate.(Source: Wikipedia)In spite of performing testing, Why major software fails?Introduction

Fact sheet

Software failuresSoftware bugs are costing the U.S. economy an estimated $59.5 billion each year.(Source: WASHINGTON (COMPUTERWORLD))A May 2005 newspaper article reported that a major hybrid car manufacturer had to install a software fix on 20,000 vehicles due to problems with invalid engine warning lights and occasional stalling. On June 4 1996, the first flight of the European Space Agency's new Ariane 5 rocket failed shortly after launching, resulting in an estimated uninsured loss of $0.5 billion dollars.In early 1999, a major computer game company recalled all copies of a popular new product due to software problems.

So, what went wrong?Major software fails due to shortfalls in skills to deal with stakeholder value propositionsOut of six reasons cited for failures, five arerelated to communications between teams and stakeholdersPoor planning and bad communicationScope — stakeholders — goals, we rarely see testers involved to drive out any ambiguities or inconsistencies in these crucial deliverables

All about stakeholders

Who is a stakeholder?Are entities who areaffected by:The success or failure of a project The actions or inactions of a productThe effects of a serviceStakeholder

Advantages of identifying and involvingBuild organizational buy-in, mutual trust, commitment and capability.Reduced litigation/opposition to project implementation that results from the plan.The introduction of new perspectives and diverse interests into the planning process.Respect among adversarial advocacy groups and varied stakeholders across organizations of varied interest with varied POV (point of view)Incorporation of an open-minded and broad search for creative alternatives.Maximize the potential for a successful project from current to future state.Ensure the right people receive the right information, at the right time, in the right way.Ensure the right people participate at the right time, in the right way.In order to proactively increase stakeholder commitment to change over time stakeholder engagement is required.

Stakeholder analysisSDLCmanagementDeliverymanagementQualitymanagementRequirements engineeringApplication architecture and designData modelingCoding and unit testingTest definitionTest executionGo live!TransitionProject initiationProject planningEstimationProject monitoring and controlRisk action assumption issues managementSupplier agreement managementChange controlDecision analysis and resolutionProject closureQuality assuranceMetrics collection and reportingDeliverable reviewDefect preventionDefect managementFigure 1: Structured process area and process list of different management cycles

Requirements engineering

Application architecture and design

Data modeling

Coding and unit testing

Test definition

Test execution

Go live!

Transition

Project initiation

Project planning

Estimation

Project monitoring and control

Risk action assumption issues management

Supplier agreement management

Change control

Decision analysis and resolution

Project closure

Quality assurance

Metrics collection and reporting

Deliverable review

Defect prevention

Defect management

Analyze your stakeholdersUnderstand your stakeholders:What is their motivation? What are their expectations? What do we expect of them? Where are they? How expert are they at what they do? What is their availability?

Analyze your stakeholders (cont.)Examples of categories you could use are:Decision makers (e.g., sponsors, artifact approvers) Information providers (e.g., Subject Matter Expertise) Regulatory (e.g., legal body, Center of excellence) Implementers (e.g., developers, testers) End users Post implementation support (e.g., trainers, managers)

Stakeholder engagement and communicationStakeholder assessmentIdentify the key stakeholders of the program and the extent to which they:Need to be engagedRequire specific communicationStakeholder action planOutline a framework to manage stakeholder engagement and communications throughout the projectCommunication planOutline the detailed plan for communicating with key stakeholders throughout the project and establish responsibility for communicationFigure 2: Stakeholder engagement Approach

Identify the key stakeholders of the program and the extent to which they:

Need to be engaged

Require specific communication

Outline a framework to manage stakeholder engagement and communications throughout the project

Outline the detailed plan for communicating with key stakeholders throughout the project and establish responsibility for communication

Engage stakeholders early and throughout the planPlan should build trust over time and should allow for revisiting of the goals and project implementationHave a roadmapBe flexibleAdhere to meeting timesFacilitate the meetings skillfullyFollow upFundamentals

Stakeholder engagement strategiesCommitment Level: Advocacy & OwnershipEngagement strategy: Position as ChampionLow ABILITY TO INFLUENCE§ HighCommitment Level: Commitment & ActionEngagement Strategy: Involve extensivelyCommitment level: UnderstandingEngagement Strategy: Address concernsLow DESIRED COMMITMENT HighHigh PROJECT IMPACT^ LowCommitment Level: AwarenessEngagement Strategy: Keep informedCommitment Level: Support & buy-inEngagement Strategy: Enlist as neededStart-up TIME Vision AchievedFigure 3:Stakeholder engagement map

Stakeholder engagement planFigure 4: Stakeholder engagement assessment and action plan

Stakeholder communication planFigure 5: Stakeholder communication needs assessment and action plan Figure 6: Stakeholder communication plan

Commitment versus timeEngagementIndividuals are actively involved in and contribute to Project activities.AcceptanceIndividuals are receptive to working with and implementing Project changes amid uncertainty.UnderstandingIndividuals have an appreciation for the impacts and benefits that the Project will have on their functional areas.AwarenessIndividuals have heard that the Project exists and are aware of basic scope of the Project and general concepts.CommitmentOwnershipIndividuals acknowledge that the Project belongs to them and create innovative ways to use and improve it.Status quoTimeVisionFigure 7: Stakeholder commitment versus time graph

Inadequate communicationConstraints on time and moneyPressures to meet schedules Inappropriate planningLittle or no monitoring and evaluation process of interactionChallenges

Stories/Case StudyA leading global asset management firm announced merger of equal in late 2006 targeting close in mid 2007. The publicly announced target was more than half a billion dollars in cost reduction fully captured in five years. Deloitte was engaged to assist pre close planning, post close tracking, tools/system/framework development, enterprise wide base lining and non personnel expense execution. The mobilization of cross functional experts/staff and leverage of proprietary benchmarks and methodologies helped the firms successfully delivered/exceeded target slotted for the first six months of closing. In particular, the team achieved 40% cost saving in one major procurement category alone, which involved engaging close to 100 business stakeholders and gathering thousands of detailed specifications.

Stories/Case StudyAs a small credit union in the Vancouver area, Vancity was founded on principles of community and has won numerous awards for its work around sustainability and climate change. With a re-branding effort that included an opportunity to better highlight its sustainability efforts, Vancity actively engages members and prospective members through new social media channels, member forums, unique brand campaigns, educational activities, and numerous opportunities for stakeholder feedback. As a result, brand preference went up by 30% and Vancity announced that it became carbon-neutral at the end of 2007, two years ahead of plan. As part of this effort, Vancity recorded more than $2 million in cost savings since 1992 through reductions in energy usage alone.

References

Questions?

Thank you

Contact:nethakur@deloitte.comthakurne@gmail.com

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