A well-described plan and execution is the most prominent aspect of risk management; therefore, you must always address it. Before any testing activities begin, the Test strategy document can distribute to the entire testing team. In SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle), the test strategy document plays an important role. It includes various significant aspects, such as who will implement the testing, what will be tested, how it will be succeeded, and what risks and incidents will be are related to it. Before testing deliverables, include a test strategy, test plan as well as test scenarios and test cases.
Test plans are used at project levels, whereas test strategies are generally used at the organizational levels. Consider different testing levels when selecting regression test cases. Select cases that have direct relationship with the fix and also include few business critical cases that prove basic business scenarios still work. Remember also that non-functional testing (security, performance, usability) plays an important role in proving business continuation. They should also be reviewed by leads for all levels of testing to make sure the coverage is complete, yet not overlapping.
Step 2 Test Approach: Our Plan of Action
An effective test strategy may take no more than one page and one hour to create. One thing I have realized after teaching this for over 30 years is that test strategy creation requires experience and judgement. While any strategy may have flaws, experience helps to reduce those flaws. The https://www.globalcloudteam.com/ test strategy also is the opportunity for collaboration very early on a project which has many benefits. The five or six hours will more than be recouped in time saved in less re-work. There are many ways to write a test strategy ranging from a solo effort to an interactive group activity.
These may be important to your stakeholders, but not part of the “standard” list of attributes. In Figure 3 we see an example of three of these characteristics and sub-characteristics. However, it takes a relatively short amount of time to document a test strategy – perhaps 2 hours or less. It is important to understand why bother with documenting a test strategy at all. Another term that is often mentioned along with “test strategy” is of “test approach”.
It’s important to select the right set of instruments covering each specific task instead of relying on one-size-fits-all solutions. The main goal of the test plan document is to describe in detail how the testing will be done for a specific product. So, that test strategy allows everyone to understand how one of the most critical and time-consuming tasks will be performed. However, it is important to remember that the test plan and test strategy are two different types of test planning assets, each with a different purpose. Trying to substitute one for the other often ends in communication gaps and omissions of critical items.
The main purpose of a Test Strategy is to produce an understanding of the complete approach, tools, targets, and timing of test activities to be performed. It should clarify the core tasks and challenges of the particular test project. A good test strategy must be specific to requirements, simple to understand, practically appropriate, and have achievable targets. The test strategy must give a clear vision of what the testing team will do for the whole project for the entire duration. The person who prepares this document must be functionally strong in the product domain, with very good experience, as this is the document that is going to drive the entire team for the testing activities. Test strategy must be clearly explained to the testing team members right at the beginning of the project.
- You can consider hiring more software testers and going ahead with manual testing.
- Test plans and test strategies are part of any comprehensive and effective software QA system.
- The test strategy is an organization-level document that establishes the general test approach — what should be accomplished and how to achieve it.
- The test strategy document is accountable for consistency in the process of testing.
- Both the test plan and test strategy are technical documents that facilitate and improve software testing but on different levels.
Besides, it features the test cases and specifications, putting all these together for execution. All testing strategies given below provide the tester with a template for testing. Test Strategy in software testing is defined as a set of guiding principles that determines the test design & regulates how the software testing process will be done.
Requirements traceability matrix
This can occur on test cases that were previously functioning properly. Any risks that will affect the testing process must be listed along with the mitigation. By documenting a risk, its occurrence can be anticipated well ahead of time. Proactive action may be taken to prevent it from occurring, or to mitigate its damage.
And we also learn about features of test strategy, components of test strategy, types of test strategies, and different testing activities, which include the test strategy document. The list of the features to be tested comes with references to the requirement specifications documents which include detailed information on the functionality. Both the test plan and test strategy are technical documents that facilitate and improve software testing but on different levels. And as there is confusion about these concepts, let’s dive into both of them, exploring their purposes, logic, and nature. A test strategy is not a substitute for a test plan, but there may be times when just a test strategy may suffice in communication goals, risks and responsibilities of a test.
Test Plan vs Test Strategy – Difference Between Them
Sample risks are dependency of completion of coding done by sub-contractors, or capability of testing tools. A test automation strategy is a plan that outlines how and when to implement automation in testing. It defines objectives, scope, tools, resources, and roles to enhance testing efficiency and coverage.
In Agile development, a master plan for the project can be made, with specific sub-plans for each iteration. The test plan (often termed a QA test plan) is a base of software testing. If a testing approach similar to the reactive testing strategy is chosen, testing occurs periodically, even after the product is released. In such cases, test teams have a recurring role with each new update in the software. To make this repetitive task more effective and effortless, recording the time taken to meet the product requirements and delivering it is a crucial activity. This helps the team to eliminate redundancy in the process and encourages testers to find quicker solutions to the errors.
The higher the scope, risk and complexity, the greater is the need for good communication and planning, which a test plan can help achieve. Both the Test Plan and the Test Strategy are key and vital documents during the testing process. Knowing how to distinguish them will allow the team to take full advantage of them, and thus the proposed objectives can be achieved. The Test strategy document is a high-level document that outlines the testing technique used in the Software Development Life Cycle and confirms the test kinds or levels that will be performed on the product. One can’t change the test strategy once it’s been written, and it’s been accepted by the Project Manager and development team. As described in the blog above, these are two different aspects wherein a test plan is comprehensive and detailed as compared to a test strategy.
This data is essential for the test team (Test) to be as structured and efficient as possible. A Test Strategy differs from a Test Plan, which is a document that gathers and organizes test cases by functional areas and/or types of testing in a format that can be presented to other teams and/or customers. Both are critical components of the Quality Assurance process since they aid in communicating the breadth of the test method and ensuring test coverage while increasing the testing effort’s efficiency. Test strategy is a comprehensive document that describes the approach to performing software testing. It lets the project managers, developers, and testers know of the critical issues of the process.
Yet, we recommend involving other team members, for example developers or designers. The test strategy is based on the business requirement specification (BRS) document and serves as a guidance to QA engineers, developers, and stakeholders. As mentioned above, the Test Strategy is one of the sections of the Test Plan, and its primary function is to guide the Test Plan.
When it comes to segregating test strategy vs test plan, many find it quite complicated to identify the key differences between the two. A test strategy is generally a static document and the test plan, on the other hand, specifies what to test, when to test, and how to test. The test strategy document gives a higher level perspective than the test plan, and contents in the test plan must be aligned with the direction of the test strategy. Test strategy is derived from BRS (business requirement specification).
