I was lucky enough to be able to attend Telerik Test Professional Conference(TTPC) held in Jim Holmes, Evangelist, Telerik Testing Tools, crisply consolidated the Trends in Testing, the Challenges Involved and the ways in which the whole testing process can be improved to bring true benefits to the tester, the project/product under test and the organization investing in the project, as four major points.
More Value Cut Waste
The aim of tester should not be to test the product just to meet the requirements, but to come up with scenarios that shake the whole system and expose the unexpected bugs so that a well tested bug free product reaches the hands of the customers. This can also be achieved by the means of Exploratory Testing, where a tester starts a testing session with a defined charter in mind but does not follow specific test cases.
Move Left
Testing is generally an activity that is done once the product reaches final stages, but, to truly increase the ROI and reduce the time to market of a well tested, mature product, testers should be involved in the product development life-cycle from the very inception of the project. Developers focus only on the technology and unit testing aspects of the product, it is testers who test the product from the end user perspective and can give valuable inputs which can take care of some critical bugs surfacing in the final stages of the product development.
Whole Team Testing
Collaboration is the key to a successful product. More discussion between all the members of the associated project - the developer, tester, program manager, product owners, clarifying each other's perception could bring about exceptional results for the project. The valuable inputs when implemented correctly and tested thoroughly can bring competitive products in the market quickly.
Transform Manual Testing
Though Manual testing becomes indispensable at times but it is not a value add to the tester and the end product as a whole. Automating the tests, especially the functional tests which are enormous and complex, getting rid of repetitive test steps and concentrating on understanding the system to come up with value added testing will benefit product and the company more.
Talking about Telerik Test Studio Jim said, Telerik Test Studio concentrates on the User Experience of the Tool, the UX is designed from the Tester’s perspective and not from the developers perspective. The Simplicity and Usability of the tool, Maintainability of the Test Cases and Flexibility that it offers to the Testers, is the core essence of the tool.
Clearing some of the concerns raised by the audience, on the threat these automation tools present to the value of the testers Jim said it is human nature to feel the fear, Test Automation will augment the value of the tester by liberating them from doing repetitive tasks and concentrating on building their domain knowledge for the benefit of the individual and for the company.
Clearing doubts on effectiveness of Automation Testing for short agile sprints and small projects spanning a few weeks, Jim said Test Automation is indeed beneficial in these scenario too, but it has to be done in a more disciplined way as the time is short.
The conference was quite enriching, and a not to miss event whenever it happens the next time near you.
