The document details a presentation on optimizing processes in agile testing, delivered by Janet Gregory of Dragonfire, Inc. It emphasizes the importance of understanding the purpose behind processes and the need for simplicity to add value without excessive documentation. Gregory advocates for a mindset of agility and encourages providing information for better decision-making in agile environments.

1. BT5
Concurrent Session
11/14/2013 2:15 PM
"Sprinkle on Just Enough
Process"
Presented by:
Janet Gregory
DragonFire, Inc.
Brought to you by:
340 Corporate Way, Suite 300, Orange Park, FL 32073
888 268 8770 904 278 0524 sqeinfo@sqe.com www.sqe.com

2. Janet Gregory
DragonFire, Inc.
Agile testing coach and practitioner Janet Gregory (@janetgregoryca) is
the coauthor of Agile Testing: A Practical Guide for Testers and Agile
Teams and a contributor to 97 Things Every Programmer Should Know.
Janet specializes in showing agile teams how testers can add value in
areas beyond critiquing the product. For the past ten years, she has been
working with teams to transition to agile development. Janet teaches agile
testing courses and tutorials worldwide, contributes articles to leading
publications, and enjoys sharing her experiences at conferences and user
group meetings worldwide. Find more information at janetgregory.ca or visit
her blog.

3. 16/09/2013
Sprinkle on
Just Enough
Process
Better Software East, 2013
Janet Gregory
DragonFire Inc.
@janetgregoryca
A bit about me ….
- Programmer 1991 – 1997: traditional projects
- QA Manager – traditional projects prior to 2000
- Tested in, and coached in agile teams 2000 – 2009
Last 4 yrs …
coaching,
training,
consulting
Agile Testing
book
published
January 2009
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4. 16/09/2013
How much process is enough?
What Processes do You Have?
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Requirements Management
Defect Tracking
Project Tracking
Release Management
Metrics
Team Management
Risk Management
Software Life Cycle
Documentation Management
Communication Channels
Back-up and Recovery
………………………….
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Size Matters
Criticality / Complexity of Application
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6. 16/09/2013
PROCESS CONTROL
Visualization
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7. 16/09/2013
Story,
Kanban, or
Task
Boards
Shows process and progress
Planning,
Designing,
etc.,
Sessions
Pictures capture notes
Documentation Deliverables
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Test strategy
Test plan
Test cases
Estimates
Test charters
Bug reports
Metrics
Test results
Build notes
Release notes
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Deployment plan
Knowledge transfer
Retrospective notes
etc ………
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8. 16/09/2013
Ask ..
• Who wants it?
• Why do they want it?
• i.e. What problem are they trying to solve
• then …. Ask yourself, what is the simplest then
you can possibly do?
Simple Test Results
Be prepared to discuss why … and risks if it is a thumbs down
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9. 16/09/2013
Rather than a 50 page document
…. of a full product lifecycle description
Could you do something simpler
Something like this …
Product Life Cycle Level 1
EXPLORE
REALIZE
SUPPORT
& SUSTAIN
RETIRE
EXPLORE: What
should we build?
REALIZE: Build it,
test it & ship it!
SUPPORT & SUSTAIN:
Keep it going!
RETIRE:
Put it to sleep!
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10. 16/09/2013
EXPLORE – Expanded into Level 2 stages
EXPLORE
REALIZE
SUPPORT
& SUSTAIN
RETIRE
Entry Criteria:
Executive Decision
Exit Criteria:
Approved Business Plan
ACTIVITIES
Market & customer analysis
Technology analysis
ROI analysis
Gather market requirements
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EXPLORE
•Purpose
– To identify product ideas and evaluate the
business opportunity associated with each
•Entry Criteria
– Executive directive based on a concept
•Exit Criteria (into REALIZE)
– Approved Business Plan
Approved business plan: Analysis of the business opportunity associated with a product, with
“Approved” as the key to ensure that resources are committed before moving to the next step. It is
a contract between management and the project team that the product is part of the roadmap.
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11. 16/09/2013
EXPLORE Stage – Level 2
•
Entry and exit criteria are the same as level 1
• Deliverables
– Business Plan
– MRD (Market Requirements document)
• Interim milestones
– Completion of MRD
– As defined in the Business Plan
• Example Activities
– Market analysis
– ROI analysis
– Technology analysis
– Gather market requirements
Market Requirements doc.- Contract between marketing and engineering, with marketing leading
the effort. It should include high-level product description, features, etc.; no detail, but high level to
give a starting point for the engineering group to start filling in the details. The acceptance plan will
be based on this document – i.e.) addresses the customer’s needs.
Technology analysis – Is the proposed technology feasible?
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Another
example:
Testing
Process
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12. 16/09/2013
Process
Lots of documentation
What is right for you?
It depends …
Ask why, what, for whom?
Keep it simple, if you can.
But, make sure it adds value.
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Did you notice ???
Not a single mention of …
“agile”
agility is a mindset
simplicity is one of the principles
Agile Testing: A Practical Guide for
Testers and Agile Teams
By Lisa Crispin and Janet Gregory
www.agiletester.ca
Contact info
www.janetgregory.ca
www.janetgregory.ca/blog
Email: janet@agiletester.ca
Twitter: janetgregoryca
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14. 16/09/2013
Instead of saying NO,
or being the gatekeeper
Be the information provider so
business can make the decisions
Any questions / concerns?
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