9. 9
Using This in Practice for Your Investment Analysis
Examples:
1. Environments Approach
2. Test Library Approach
10. 10
Environments
QA does not control the Test Environment QA owns multiple Test Environments (incl Load Test)
Simulate Explore Challenge Communicate Code Simulate Explore Challenge Communicate Code
Behavior x x x x x x x x
Possible Conditions x x x x x x x x x x
Expectations x x x x x x x x
Readiness x x x x x x
12. 12
“Traceability to Requirements” Test Cases Library Exploration Map Style Test Design
Simulate Explore Challenge Communicate Code Simulate Explore Challenge Communicate Code
Behavior x x x x x x x x
Possible Conditions x x x x x x x x x x
Expectations x x x x x x x x
Readiness x x x x x x
Test Library
Presentation opening - Investment in QA
My discussion theme is: if you are building a complex software engineering solution (something of the this scale (pictured)) - keep investing in QA
Recently the world started moving to Agile and Devops. The same time we all see a trend of declining importance of QA discipline. Why?
We believe that Software managers and consultants put QA purpose in the wrong place.
Here is how it’s defined in Wiki: Software quality assurance (SQA) consists of a means of monitoring the software engineering processes and methods used to ensure quality.[citation needed] The methods by which this is accomplished are many and varied, and may include ensuring conformance to one or more standards, such as ISO 9000 or a model such as CMMI
Such wrong placement of QA purpose made it part of the things that are becoming obsolete in new agile world.
Contrary to this - we believe that the true purpose of QA is to be the “Perception System” of a “Software Producing Brain”
If you want a good perception system, you must define what is good. These are the qualities you want from it.
Recently one of our important clients raised a question: “What are the benefits of your QA team and of Test Automation in particular?” It triggered a lot of reflection in my mind. Really, what are benefits of having a good perception system? Not being eaten by a lion? Not falling off the cliff? In terms of a Software Project, it means controlling your project and production maintenance costs, giving adequate commitments to stakeholders and being able to fight production incidents. So no real benefits - just survival...
Moving on from metaphors to real Software Projects. These are correct QA tasks in our view. This is something you must invest in. You have the behavior of the system you are building, possible conditions it might be in during production, expectations from its stakeholders and readiness to be shipped to them. What must you do with all these things? Pretty simple:
Simulate, Explore, Challenge, Communicate and Code. This simple table can be easily used to analyze your “QA investment portfolio”. What am I talking about?
This thing is your portfolio. All these things must be lined up when you are investing in QA. When we are analyzing our investment we can look at any of these items and see if we are in the right direction. Let me give you a couple of examples.
What do you do with test environments, and how do you organize the test library?
This is very simple: What do you do with test environments? Do you build many and let QA play with them or replicate your production best practices? Here is the answer. In the latter case QA will not be able to simulate, explore and automate things easily.
Let me give you another obvious example. Do you write test cases in Quality Center or do you go on a vacation in Italy? We all know the answer, right. But here I mean not actually going to Italy but rather presenting your test design as a “Map” of your software features and possible conditions and the path you may take exploring it?
This is the comparison. So putting writing individual test cases (based on written requirements) and putting them into “Test Management Tool” is a really destructive practice for your QA investment.
So in conclusion: Your Software Development Brain needs good perception system.
If you do not want your project to be eaten by a lion, keep investing in QA
After the conference will distribute detailed description of what we see as good QA investment portfolio.
Thank you very much!
I am happy to answer your questions… ?