Unlike traditional project management methods that follow a linear and plan-driven approach, agile project management embraces change and accommodates evolving requirements throughout the development project’s lifecycle. The goal of Agile methodology is to provide small, incrementally deliverable segments of working software in a more flexible and adaptive manner than traditional project management approaches.
What is Agile testing?
Agile testing is an approach to the testing process on an Agile project. The approach to the testing process on an Agile project needs to be tailor-made to suit the specific characteristics of the organization, team, and environment. The testing process is not a separate one from development but rather a part of it, so together they create an effective Agile development process.
One of the key points about the testing process on an Agile project is that testing is one that adapts and changes over time. On an Agile project, we do not necessarily know what we are going to do in advance, instead, we adapt and prioritize functionality and the testing approach.
When an Agile project starts, from the elicited requirements, we try to create a minimum viable product, whereupon we validate assumptions and make sure that we are on the right track. This way, we get to know the needs of users or customers. As we move through the project, the team learns how to work together, and the process of development and testing evolves and changes.
The Agile testing approach to the testing process should be straightforward. We should try to involve everyone, and we should do this as a part of the development process. To make the testing approach as simple as possible, we should avoid the pitfalls associated with unnecessary documentation, which can often be burdensome in traditional testing approaches. So, if we remove a lot of unnecessary extras and get back to the essence of testing, then we have something that works even better on an Agile project.
Because the Agile project is incrementally defining what needs to be done and we do not know in advance what we are going to do, we make decisions as we go along, therefore, a lot of big documents to explain exactly what you are going to cover at a certain point are not required anymore. Instead, flexibility and adaptability are paramount, allowing the team to tailor the testing process based on evolving project needs.
The Agile approach has a much greater requirement for verbal communication and for taking responsibility for pointing out risks and problems at the time that they happen. While documentation is minimized, it doesn’t mean it’s entirely eliminated. Documenting decisions remains crucial, as it provides a record of the choices made and serves as valuable reference material for later evaluations.
While the Agile process encourages flexibility and adaptation, there’s still a need to document testing activities and ideas that emerge during the process. This documentation serves multiple purposes, including providing transparency, aiding in knowledge transfer, and assisting in evaluating the completeness of the testing efforts.
Conclusion
Essential to the Agile process, we are trying to invent and create a testing process as we go along. As the team navigates through the project, it responds to changing needs and environmental dynamics based on experience and lessons learned. So, in terms of understanding Agile testing, we need to understand what testing is for and what we are trying to achieve when we test. It’s about more than just finding defects, it’s a continuous process of refining and optimizing the testing strategy to deliver high-quality software that meets customer expectations.
If you still haven’t, read our blog post on the role of AI in automated testing.
