Abstract: Have you ever struggled to get features out the door, only to realize you are behind schedule? Have you ever been on time with your release, but realize after that you have to revert back because of catastrophic bugs? Have you ever wished there was more clarity into the development process, and the potential risk of deployment of a feature?
I have, and I believe these are questions we have all asked or have grappled with at one point or another. They are common questions when looking to deliver software, and will likely be questions we ask on all projects we work on. And so, the real question is, where do we find answers?
Testers!
In this talk, I will direct you to a secret source; tapping into the well of the Quality Assurance team. A team whose focus is producing a quality product by conducting test plans and appropriate coverage for your product. They work interactively with other roles within engineering to insure all approaches to development are covered and accounted for. And they work cohesively within Agile ceremonies to reveal areas of risk and provide feedback concerning each deployment. They are the additions you never knew you had. With quality being the responsibility of everyone on the team, they work as an added level of assurance to round out the development process, and secure a better deployment. When given the space, they have the ability provide the resources needed to help find answers to these hard questions, and better prepare the team for the unknowns of delivering software.
This is the tester's mission.
Learning Outcomes: - We will take a walk through the power of understanding a tester's contributions on an agile team, and how to see the semblance of having a successful delivery when testers are closely integrated on the team by discussing:
- - Testing Plans, Coverage, and Matrixes,
- - The importance of establishing clear Definitions of "Ready" and "Done,"
- - Testers participation and voice in Agile Ceremonies, and
- - The art of testing and pair testing
