WELCOME TO THE FUTURE! �.�

PREPARING FOR OUR AGILE TESTING JOURNEYS

AGILE TESTING DAYS – POTSDAM, GERMANY NOVEMBER 2014

Lisa Crispin & Janet Gregory @lisacrispin @janetgregoryca

The Timid Tester

THE WORLD AS IT WAS…

The Cowboy Programmer

ENTER … SUPER AGILE PERSON �

AND THEN … �COLLABORATION �

From Shrek�

AS WE CONTINUE TO GO WHERE NO MAN (OR

WOMAN) HAS GONE BEFORE… �

CAN WE REALLY PREDICT WHAT WILL BE? �

• Challenges • What would we like to help? • What can we do?

• Changing the conversation

• What can we do this week to prepare?

TOPICS�

CHALLENGES�

•  Always more for testers to know … •  Specific contexts: •  big data, distributed teams, the

enterprise, embedded, mobile, robotics, gaming

•  New technologies, techniques •  Building the right thing – adding value •  Continuous delivery, continuous testing

THE FUTURE WHAT WE WANT (MAYBE NEED)

VS

THE PRESENT WHAT WE HAVE & HOW WE CAN ADAPT

THE AGILE TESTER�Needs to: •  learn new skills •  keep up with new technologies •  communicate well •  keep their finger on the pulse

of product quality In other words, be a shape-shifter to adapt to ever-changing needs

Mystique: X-men�

Odo, Star Trek – Deep Space 9�

The ability:

•  to learn

•  to become a T-shaped tester

• to use cognitive thinking skills

• to take charge of your career

WHAT WE DO HAVE … IS

BREADTH

D E

P T

H

• Technical awareness – to collaborate with other roles • Exploratory testing • New techniques, eg. • Swarming • Generative testing • Dealing with ‘big data’

YOUR CONTEXT

Superman – his cave / crystals

A COMMON CHALLENGE

Want to be able to talk face-to-face

WHENEVER THEY WANT!

Distributed teams

In other words, they need a transporter

Original Star Trek series-

• Use existing tools better • Video conferencing, webcams • Collaboration aids – eg. mind mapping • Air travel, road trip, feet

• Learn to respect other’s cultures

WHAT WE CAN DO … IS

Original Star Trek series – Spock, Vulcan Live long and prosper

Next Generation Star Trek series- Warf, Klingon

OUR NEXT CHALLENGE: GIVING CUSTOMERS WHAT THEY NEED

Customers want us to deliver exactly what they are thinking.

arstechnica.com Original Star Trek series – Vulcan mind meld

Learn tools to help us determine what the real problem is - like impact mapping (Gojko Adzic)

WHAT WE CAN DO… IS

Or story mapping (Jeff Patton)

Incorporate other disciplines - like business analysis (eg. 7 product dimensions)

From Discover to Deliver by Ellen Gottesdiener and Mary Gorman

- or user experience experts

WE CAN ALSO ….

• Guide development with real examples • Not only the API level, but in UI as well

AND ….

IS IT TIME TO CHANGE THE CONVERSATION?

SO, WHAT MAY NOT WORK IN THE FUTURE?

Original Star Trek series- Season 2: Episode 15

• Know your stakeholders • What are their objectives? • What problem are they trying to solve • Create a shared understanding

BUSINESS VALUE

Original Star Trek series cast

Original Star Trek series “bad guys”

More than project or product risk

Uncertainty

Models can help us chose how we attack a problem

•  For example: knowing the difference between complexity vs.. complicated vs.. simple or even chaotic

Read Liz Keogh on the Cynefin model

USE DIFFERENT APPROACHES AND TOOLS

TO:

- Understand the problem - Mitigate your risk - Manage your uncertainty - Understand the value

- Validate the solution

for example: • How will mobile apps

evolve? • How will we test them?

CAN WE PREDICT THE FUTURE? �.�

IT WOULD BE HELPFUL… �

Perhaps  we  start  with  a  risk  profile,  and  focus  on  a  risk-­‐based  or  value-­‐based  solu9on  delivery.  

 Note:  not  test-­‐based  

"WHEN CAN I STOP DOING CUSTOMER VALIDATION AND

EXPERIMENTATION?

UM. NEVER. “

CHERYL QUIRION

Original Star Trek series – Scotty, the engineer

NEW HORIZONS��

WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU? �

THE WORLD AS IT IS… �

CELEBRATE & ENJOY THE CONFERENCE!

Agile Testing: A Practical Guide for Testers and Agile Teams

By Lisa Crispin and Janet Gregory

www.janetgregory.ca email: janet@agiletester.ca Twitter: @janetgregoryca

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More Agile Testing: Learning Journeys for the Whole Team By Janet Gregory and Lisa Crispin www.agiletester.ca www.agiletester.com

lisacrispin.com email: lisa@agiletester.ca Twitter: @lisacrispin