Agile

Agile Testing - Quality in an Agile environment

Agile Testing Background

In traditional ‘waterfall’ software development projects, the activities that fall under the banner of ‘testing’ – unit, module and integration testing; system testing and user acceptance testing; performance, security and resilience testing; etc. – are usually well defined and clearly understood. However, on an agile project, when ‘production ready’ code is being produced iteratively, how to structure effective testing is less obvious. Test managers and test analysts face many challenges, including:

 

  • How do I create a test plan and test scripts while requirements are still evolving? (Indeed, should I still aim to create test plans and scripts, or is there a better way?)
  • When do I start testing?
  • Do I need to change the way I test? What alternate strategies could I employ?
  • Is there actually a role for an ‘independent tester’ on an agile project, or should developers and users perform all of the testing?
  • How will regression testing be viable when there is a never ending set of changes to incorporate and test?
  • How can I ensure that quality is maintained given the inherent pace of development that comes with an agile approach?
  • Will I need to compromise?

 

Benefits of attending this training course

In this practical, compact oneâ€day workshop – the fourth in our Agile Essentials series – we examine what makes for effective testing on an agile project. For those new to functional testing the aim is to provide guidance and outline some basic techniques; for more experienced test analysts and test managers we assess the different testing challenges an agile project throws up, to help you decide what changes will be needed to your testing processes throughout the software development life cycle. The workshop will draw on realâ€life case studies, going beyond the theory of agile to explore what actually happens in an agile project, which testing strategies and techniques work, and which do not!

 

At the end of the day delegates will be able to answer the following questions:

  • What are the main agile methodologies and how are they implemented in practice?
  • How will agile impact on my current testing processes and team structure?
  • What is the role of an independent test analyst on an agile project?
  • When and how can independent testing add value?
  • How do I ensure quality on an agile project?
  • How do I measure it?
  • What are the common mistakes made when testing on an agile project and how should I avoid them?

 

Delivered in a highly interactive style with a pragmatic focus on ‘what works’, this workshop is aimed at anyone who needs to understand or play a testing role on an Agile project, and will be especially valuable to experienced tester analysts who have experience and understanding of ‘traditional’ testing processes.

 

Topics Covered in Agile Testing:

What is Agile?

  • Evolution of Agile
  • Agile principles
  • Most popular current Agile methodologies
  • Waterfall vs. Agile – similarities and differences

 

Where does Agile work well?

  • Project type / size / criticality
  • Corporate culture and ethos
  • People considerations

 

Review of traditional test processes

 

Agile test strategies

  • Test Driven Development
  • Static testingStructural testing
  • Exploratory testing

 

Implementation of an Agile Test process

  • Where testing fits within an Agile lifecycle
  • Planning testing on an Agile project
  • The role of the independent tester in Agile
  • Evolve requirements by the creation of test scenarios
  • Where testers add value
  • Different test phases applicable to Agile
  • Monitoring and reporting test progressAutomated testing
  • Understanding team dynamics
  • Determining the appropriate test process for your organisation

 

Understanding the Quality needs

  • How is quality defined
  • When is ‘complete’ really ‘complete’ – what constitutes ‘finished’
  • Test driven development
  • Testing strategies

 

Testing tools

  • Common tools used
  • How automated should your testing be
  • Common issues and lessons learned

 

Who should attend?

  • Test Managers
  • Testers
  • Test Consultants
  • Developers
  • Project Managers
  • Programme Managers