Currently, most software development services apply Agile methodology. In this approach, the team must deliver a minimum viable product that adds business value at the end of each sprint (iteration). As a result, quality assurance - especially software testing - has become vital for meeting this goal. It is indispensable for all of those involved in the project, regardless of their role, to ensure the quality of the delivered product..
Since sprints (iterations) last approximately two weeks, it is crucial to identify the highest possible number of errors in the initial phases of development. To achieve this, the teams involved (DEV and QA) need to join forces to eliminate previously undetected bugs that can have negative consequences once the product passes to a production environment.
How Can You Integrate Testing Effectively in Software Development?
The following are three key actions you can implement in your test management plan that help you augment your quality assurance services:
- Set up internal meetings to plan and check user histories for future sprints. In these meetings, the QA team can detail the scenarios that need to be tested so that the development team can keep them in mind when estimating and generating unit test cases.
- Deliver all developed user history test cases for the current sprint to the development team; this means these can be considered during unit testing. Additionally, if an error shows up, it can be fixed before deploying the new code to the testing environment.
- Ask the development team to check the acceptance criteria for user histories before starting any work. If any criterion is not clear or needs to be updated and is not reported on time, this can lead to rework.
The goal of the above is to allow the development team to create testing environments that can eventually be added to existing testing suites. In addition, this will enable developers to be more actively involved in the product’s quality assurance process. With time, it is possible for the DEV team to perform exploratory testing on its own with flows that may not have been considered by the QA team.
Conclusion
With the arrival of the Agile approach, the responsibility for a software project’s quality is not shouldered by only one team. Instead, everyone involved is responsible for making sure that the delivered product meets the client’s requirements.
Key Takeaways
- In Agile software development, testing is vital when meeting the objective of delivering a minimum viable product that adds business value at the end of each sprint.
- To achieve the above, the teams involved (DEV and QA) need to join forces to identify the highest possible number of errors in the initial phases of a software’s development.
- To integrate testing effectively in software development, it’s important to take these three key actions: set up internal meetings to plan and check user histories, deliver all developed user history test cases of the current sprint to the development team, and check the acceptance criteria for user histories before starting any work.
- In Agile methodology, everyone involved is responsible for making sure that the delivered product meets the client’s requirements.
If you are looking for a software partner who will guarantee the excellence of your digital products by applying in-depth quality assurance testing, Encora is your solution. Get in touch today!
