MarceloToledo<marcelotoledo5000@gmail.

com>

Testinginanagileworld
MarceloToledo<marcelotoledo5000@gmail.com>
To:Marcelogmail<marcelotoledo5000@gmail.com>,marcelo.toledo@locaweb.com.br

4March2015at17:52

Testinginanagileworld

Agilehaschallengedtheworldofdevelopment,operationandprojectmanagement,leavingthemtoredefinetheir
rolesandworktogetherononeteaminafastpacedsoftwaredevelopmentenvironmentbutoneofthemost
difficulthurdlesintheworldofagileisrethinkingtheroleofthetester,accordingtoIanCulling,CTOof
VersionOne.
Traditionaltestersgoingintoanagileworldneedtostartreallyabsorbingthefactthattheirworkisntwritingout
defectsanymoreitisdeliveringsoftware,hesaid.
Theroleofthesoftwaretesterchangesconsiderablyinanagileworld.Testersnolongerhavethetimetotestfor
everything,testingisnolongeranafterthoughtandtestingisnolongerthesoleresponsibilityofthesoftware
tester,accordingtoKartikRaghavan,seniorvicepresidentofworldwideengineering,operationsandsupportat
CollabNet.
Longgonearethedayswhentestershuddletogetherinasilowaitingfordevtopassthemabuild,hesaid.The
linesbetweendevandtesthaveblurred,andsohavetherespectiveroles.Developersarewritingtestsandtesters
arewritingcode.Andmostimportantly,testishappeningearlyandoften.
Inthisagileworld,testersrolesaremoreimportantthanever,buttheroadtobecominganagiletesterisabumpy
one,accordingtoCulling.
Ascomparedtoatraditionaltesterrole,agiletestingisaverydifferentexperience,andmosttraditionaltesterswill
struggle,hesaid.
Whatitmeanstobeanagiletester
Agileisateamgame,andsoftwaretestersarenoexception.Whiletestersareoftenknownastheantisocialgroup
insoftwaredevelopment,theyneedtostepoutoftheircomfortzoneandworkwiththeentireteamthroughoutthe
lifecycle,accordingtoKevinDunne,seniorproductspecialistatQASymphony.

Oneofthekeytenetsofagileandtheagilemanifestoisthatpeoplereallyvaluefacetofaceinteractionand
collaboration,somovingintoanagileworld,testersreallyneedtoembracethat,hesaid.
AccordingtoMarcRambert,directoroftestingsolutionatCoverity,collaborationisnotonlysomethingthattesters
needtoembrace,butitisabsolutelymandatoryforagile.
Atesterneedstobeakeycontributortotheagileteam,hesaid.Theirabilitytocommunicatewithall
stakeholders,specificallydevelopers,iscrucialtosuccess.
Inorderfortestingtobebroughtsuccessfullyintotheteamlevel,qualityhastobebakedintothelifecyclefrom
thebeginningtotheend,andtestersneedtocommunicatewiththedevelopmentteamascodeisbeingwritten.
Iteliminatestheusversusthemmindsetthatyoufindinalotofthetraditionalworkflows,saidCathyCorrea,
agiletesteratVersionOne.Testersareworkingwiththedevelopmentteamtobuildqualityin.Theyarelookingat
theworkinprogressatthesametimedevelopmentisgoingonsothatwhenastorycomesthroughtheyvepulled
ittogetherasateam.Itisallabouthavingthoseconversationsasdevelopmentisgoingonsothatyouarenot
takingsomethingthatdevelopmentgivesyou,findingthebugsandbringingitback.
Bakingqualitydirectlyintothelifecyclealsotakestheresponsibilityofqualityoffthetestersandputsinontothe
teams.
Atestersroleisnolongersimplythepolicingroleofqualityassurance,butisnowthatofacollaborative
contributortoproducingqualitysoftware,saidCollabNetsRaghavan.
Inatraditionalenvironment,testerswereoftenbroughtinattheendofthelifecyclewheretheyhadweekstojust
test.Butinanagileworld,theprocessismorefluidandongoing.Testershavetogiveupacertainamountof
controlfromlastdecadetothisdecade,accordingtoMattJohnston,chiefmarketingandstrategyofferat
Applause.
Anagiletestershouldbesomeonewhoiscomfortablebeinguncomfortable.Ithastobesomeonewhois
comfortableoperatingwithincompleteinformation,hesaid.
Thismeansnolongerbeingthegatekeeperofmaintainingquality,accordingtoNikhilKaul,productmanagerat
SmartBear.Butthatdoesntmeanthatatestersroleisntjustasimportantwhenitcomestoensuringquality.
Agiletestersactmoreasafacilitatortoensurequalityisimplementedthroughoutthesoftwaredevelopmentlife
cycle,hesaid.
Onanagileteam,thereisnotimetotestforeverysinglebugordefectwithdevelopmentgoingonasuchafast
pace,whichiswhyqualityisateamcollaboration,accordingtoCorrea.
Havingthatcollaborationwiththeteam,youaretestingastheyareworking,andyouaremakingsurethatthe
developersknowwhatneedstobedone,thetestcasesthatneedtopass,thefeaturesthatneedtopass,she
said.Talkingbackandforthandcheckingthingsastheyarebeingdevelopedisreallytheonlywaytodoit.
Inaddition,themindsetofatesterneedstochangewhentransitioningtoagile.Theyarenotonlylookingatquality
fromatestperspective,butalsothecustomersperspective,accordingtoQASymphonysDunne.
Thetestersjobnowisreallytoworkwithcustomersandunderstandwhattheywantandhowtheyusethetool,
hesaid.Inanagileenvironment,wecanttesteverythingusuallybecauseofhowquicklywearedelivering
software,sowewanttotestsoftwareandunderstanditandlookatitthroughthelensofhowusers.
Theblurredlinebetweendevelopersandtesters
Manytestersfeargoingintoanagileworldthattheywillbecomefunctionallyredundant.Inagile,therolesmesh
together,withdeveloperstakingontestingrolesandtesterstakingonmoredevelopmentroles.Buttestersmust
rememberthatalthougheveryoneonanagileteamcanandisexpectedtodosomeformoftesting,testersbring
somethingdifferenttothetable,accordingtoDunne.
Ifyouarethepersonwhodevelopedthefeature,youareprettybiasedonifitisworkingproperly,hesaid.You
alwaysneedalittlebitofdisconnectyouneedthatpersonwhowasntinvolvedinbuildingit.
Butitisntonlythefactthatdevelopersaremoreinvolvedinthebuildingprocessthantestersitsatesters
knowledgethatkeepshimorherrelevant.Developersandtestersapproachtestingfromdifferentperspectives
andhavedifferentvoices,andwhiletheycandothesamesortoftasks,itistheexperiencethatreallymakesthe
difference,accordingtoVersionOnesCorrea.

Itisgoodtoblursomeofthoselineswithdevelopmentandtesting,andthereisalotofsharedresponsibilitiesbut
attheendofthedaythetestershavetheexpertise,shesaid.Theyhavethehonedskillsofknowingwhereto
look,whattotestforandwhatkindofinteractionsandbehaviorsthattheycanexpectwhensomeonecomesup
withastory.
Succeedinginagileasasoftwaretester
Whentransitioningovertoagile,therearespecifictechnicalandnontechnicalskillstestersshouldcomeprepared
withinordertosucceed.
Firstofall,understandwhythisishappening.Dontworryaboutthechallengesfocusonunderstandingwhythe
businessisdoingthis,howitbenefitsthecompanyorproduct,andwhatthebusinesshopestoachieve,according
toApplausesJohnston.
IdothinkalotoftestersandtestmanagersjumprighttoWhatdoesthatmeanforme?orHowamIgoingtodo
this?andtheykindofskippastthewhy,hesaid.Ifyouhavethatconcept,itcaninformalotofthedecisionsthat
youmakeaboutwhatandhowyouaregoingtogoafterit.
Mostimportantly,dontfightthechangeembraceitwithanopenmind,saidSmartBearsKaul.Inatraditional
world,atestermighthavehadonespecificfocus,butinanagileworldatesterwearsmanyhatsandneedtobe
flexiblewithhisorherskillset.
Testersinanagileworldcannotbenarrowlyfocusedinonearea,Kaulsaid.Theyneedtobeopenmindedand
willingtogaintechnicalspecialties,notonlyinexistingareas,butalsonew.Testersinanagileworldarejackof
alltradesandmasterofafew,ratherthanjustbeinggeneralistsorspecialists.
Dontbeafraidtoaskforhelp.AccordingtoCoveritysRambert,testersneedtobefamiliarandcomfortablewith
theagileprocess.Thiscanbeachallengingtransition,soopencommunicationandchangearekeyfactorsfor
success,hesaid.
Beabletothinkonyourfeetandswitchbetweentechniquesearly.Testersneedtoknowwhatwouldbethemost
efficientwaytotestaparticularscenario,saidKaul.Anunderstandingofwhentouseexploratoryvs.manualvs.
scriptingiscrucial.
Shareyourknowledge.Testersareveryknowledgeableabouttheirproducts,andalotofthatknowledgeneedsto
besharedamongtheteamtomakesureeveryoneisgettingvaluablefeedback,accordingtoQASymphonys
Dunne.
Takeacontinuouslearningapproachandinvestinyourself.Testersneedtoconstantlyberefiningandgrowing
theirskillsets,accordingtoJohnston.IfyouarenotaskingyourselfquestionssuchasShouldIgetmoreinto
performanceengineering,moreexposedtotestautomation,ormoreexposedgoodtestcasewriting?thenyou
arestandingstillandtheworldismovingfasterandfasterpastyou,hesaid.
Kauladdedthatlearningshouldntjustbefocusedonthepracticalimplementationofagilewithintheorganization,
butalsotheindustry.Goingtodifferentagileconferencescanbeofgreathelphere,hesaid.
Onthetechnicalside,testersneedtobecontinuallytestingthroughouttheproject,andautomationiskey,so
havingscriptingabilitiesortheabilitytouseatooltohelpbuildautomatedscriptsisveryuseful,accordingtoKaul.
Testautomationalsorequireslearningnewtechniquesandtools,andbeingabletounderstandmoretechnical
aspectswilleasethecommunicationwithdevelopers,CoveritysRambertsaid.
BringtechniquessuchasexploratorytestingandTestDrivenDevelopment(TDD)intotheagileworld.Youwant
tobelookingattheproductandifitmakesense,saidVersionOnesCorrea.Atesterisntjustsomeonewho
executestestitisdefinitelytryingtoexplorethefeatureindifferentwaysandbeingsmartaboutwhatyouare
doing.
TDDissignificantbecauseithelpschangedevelopersandtestersmindsetondeliveringanddesigningcode.In
someagileenvironmentsTDDbecomesthedrivingcomponent,accordingtoDunne.Thefirstthingwethink
aboutishowareweactuallygoingtotest.Letsnotbuildthisfeature,letsthinkabouthowwillthisitfitthis
feature.
Whatorganizationsarelookingforinanagiletester:
Beingmoreinvolvedwithrequirementsearlyoninthelifecycle:Byunderstandingrequirements
early,testplansandrequirementsspecscaninfluenceeachothertothebenefitofall,saidKartik

Raghavan,seniorvicepresidentofworldwideengineering,operationsandsupportatCollabNet.
Knowinghowtoscript:Automationplaysakeyroleinagiletestingasithelpsteamsgetrapidfeedback
onqualityinrealtime.Testersthereforeneedtoknowhowtoscripttoworkeffectivelywithdevelopersinan
agilelandscape,saidNikhilKaul,productmanageratSmartBear.
Embracingcontinuousintegration:ThinkofCIasthenewwaytestsuitesgetrunandreportfeedback.
Theprimarydifferenceisthattestsarerunimmediatelyuponcheckinandworktoinformthewholeteam,
notjustQA,aboutthestabilityofthecheckin,saidRaghavan.
Beingcreative:Testersareinauniquepositionwheretheyhaveexposureandknowledgeoftheproduct
andalsoagoodunderstandingofthecustomer.Theycansortofthinkoutsidethebox.Wewanttosee
testerscomingupwithalotofnotonlyinnovativefeaturesandsuggestionsofenhancementsthattheycan
add,butalsocomingupwithinnovativewaystotest,saidKevinDunne,seniorproductspecialistat
QASymphony.
Thinkingsystemically:Thepeoplethatcanhelpmakestructureddecisionsaboutwhattoautomateand
whatnotto,whattestcasesweneedtowriteandwhatweshouldpushofftotheworldofexploratory
testing,saidMattJohnston,chiefmarketingandstrategyofficeratApplause.
Beingopentochange:Ifyouaremovingfromatraditionaltestertoanagiletester,youhavetobeopen
tothechange,changeinthephilosophyandchangeinthewayyouwork,saidCathyCorrea,agiletester
atVersionOne.Itisgoingtobedifferentandtestersneedtobeopentothat.
Howtoolshelpanagiletester
Inagile,testerscantbeexpectedtodoeverythingthemselves.Developmentisgoingtoofast,andtestersdont
evenhaveenoughtimetotestforeverythinganymore,letalonedoeverythingmanually.Whilethereisnoone
sizefitsallagiletool,therearecertainthingsatoolcanhavetohelpstreamlinetheworkflow.
Asdevelopmentandtestingactivitiesgetunified,modernALMtoolsbringtogetherworktrackingand
managementacrossthelifecycleintoacommonintegratedtoolchainasopposedtosiloedsystemsthathave
existedpriortoagileadoption,saidCollabNetsRaghavan.
Whenexploringtools,testersshouldalwayslookforonethatisflexible,accordingtoQASymphonysDunne.
Toolsshouldbeflexibleandabletochange,hesaid.Buyingatoolthatforcesyouintooneworkflowwhereyou
arestuckdoingthatprocessoverandoveragainisreallygoingtokeepyoufromdrivingthatcontinuous
improvementthatyouarelookingfor.
Withtheshortersprintsinagile,itcanbehelpfultofindatoolthatisabletoreuseasinglescriptacrossmultiple
platforms,accordingtoSmartBearsKaul.Headdedthattoolsshouldbeabletohelptestersautomateeasily,
supportmodulartestingandintegratewithbuildsystemstoenablecontinuoustesting.
Lastly,usingintelligenttestcoveragetoolscanhelpmakeadifference,accordingtoCoveritysRambert.Asthe
releasecycleismuchfasterwithshortersprint,QAneedstoaggregatealltestingactivitiesinordertoshowthatall
changesarebeingcovered,andthattherearenotestingholesincriticalbusinessareas,hesaid.
Sometoolstesterstransitioningtoagileshouldgetfamiliarwith,accordingtoVersionOnesCorreaandCulling,
include:
SourcecontroltoolssuchasGitHub,SubversionandGit
ContinuousIntegrationtools,inordertoautomatetestexecutioninthebuildanddeploymentpipeline
OpensourcetoolssuchasSeleniumandPhantomJSforwebsitebrowserautomationJMeterfor
performancetestingandFiddlerforWebdebuggingproxy
JavaScriptlibrariesandframeworkssuchasMocha,JasmineandChai
Browserextensionsthathelptroubleshootissues,automateprocesses,monitortrafficandcatcherrors
MarceloToledo
+5511989529457
ISTQBCertifiedTesterCTFL
"Bugssexistemquandoreportados!".

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