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Cross-communication a Must for Testing Software Developed Using Agile Processes

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Cross-communication a Must for Testing Software Developed Using Agile Processes

 
April 10, 2014

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  By Mae Kowalke,
TMCnet Contributor
 


It is fair to say that agile development practices have changed how software is made and, ultimately, consumed. We now live in an iterative world where constant improvement is favored over big releases less frequently.

This impacts how software testing is performed, too, although many developers are late in catching up on the need for testing evolution as well as evolved development practices.

Historical testing practices were designed to optimize the operation of large, centralized testing groups using a testing center of excellence model, noted Ruud Teunissen, a software testing thought leader and author, in a recent blog post titled “Software Testing Landscape Shifting.” But this model struggles to support the rapid delivery of agile software development where solutions evolve through collaboration across all functional teams.


“This resulted in large volumes of manual testing, which is time-consuming and resource-intensive, slowing down delivery,” Teunissen noted. “Manual testing simply cannot keep up with daily builds, continuous integration, and the functional and non-functional testing cadence of agile delivery teams.”

For testing methodology to go hand in hand with agile development practices, it is crucial that testing be less about a centralized “test” phase and more about an ongoing discussion among various stakeholders.

Effective testing in an agile environment is more about a service-driven testing approach where there is plenty of repetition and a very short development cycle. First the developer writes an automated test case that defines a desired improvement or new function, then produces the minimum amount of code to pass that test, then re-factors the new code to acceptable standards.

This takes added communication across the entire organization.

“Traditionally, operational departments only cared about production and there seemed to be no communication between them and testing teams,” explained Teunissen. “Early involvement and people working together are the most important part of any project's backbone.”

If there is not solid communication across all departments during testing, this constant feedback process just cannot function.

Thankfully, it is easier now more than ever to have a testing management system in place that enables constant feedback and an ongoing process of evaluation and revision.

Software is never “done” in 2014.




Edited by Alisen Downey
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