According to predetermined specifications and the various test design techniques, the tester develop test cases and check if the current version corresponds to the required status of the test object.
With the increase of various Agile development methods, we see that functional testers no longer necessarily have a place within the team, but that testing is often performed by developers (unit and integration testing) and business (acceptance test). This is a missed opportunity and can influence negatively the final quality of the project. Testing is an art and it must be also be integrated within Agile processes.
Unit and integration testing performed by the developers happen often based on Test Driven Development. Also, these tests are often automated. This is a very good development, but what exactly is tested? The code that has build? But when this is working correctly, it is still debatable whether this is in line with expectations / wishes of the customer and whether any exceptional circumstances also works correctly. Because we don’t want to answer this question during the acceptance test, just a dedicated tester in Agile projects is required. The work of the tester is designed to assess what is needed to be actually built. In addition, not only the so-called happy-flows, but also all exceptional circumstances will be tested, which are prepared in accordance with the requisite test specification techniques.
Within Dialogues Technology we go one step further and we see that the tester has an even more prominent role within the team. The tester is involved already from the start and will begin to unravel the test basis (often brief description). Are there any possible inconsistencies, open-ended, impossibilities, filtering etc.? This is a dialogue with the client, where we ensure a more concrete test basis. The advantage is that the test start from a very early stage (static test) and it becomes clear what is to be built and so what has to be tested (dynamic testing). All this before the software is even built. This will also prevent the client from surprises and it is possible to get a clear business case. Since quality in agile processes is characterized by a higher satisfaction and business value, makes the role of tester only more important.
Model Based Testing (MBT) makes this possible. Based on business requirements and / or (additional) input from the business, the tester will build a test model, which includes all possible conditions and paths. Through a special testing technique all these paths, the happy-flow and non happy-flow are linked. For the automatic generation of test cases and a complete test design from the test model, we use the DTM test tool. Using this tool establishes test model is no longer a static model, since it can be repeatedly adjusted as needed, because we know that the requirements change with new insights from the business. With one click, the tool can generate automatically test cases and test design, over and over again.
The DTM test tool provides much more flexibility of Agile test approach and it minimizes the manual work, allowing greater focus for testers on the modeling of the test flow (testbasis). The DTM test tool facilitates the dialogue with the business.
Silvio Cacace, Dialogues Technology
