ISTQB FOUNDATION 4.0 | Tutorial 12 | Shift Left Approach | Retrospective and Process Improvement

Summary

This tutorial delves into the ISTQB Foundation's Chapter 2, focusing on testing within the SDLC. It introduces the 'Shift Left' approach, emphasizing early testing activities like reviewing specifications and writing test cases before code implementation. The script also covers the benefits of retrospectives for process improvement, highlighting the importance of team collaboration, continuous learning, and the integration of CI/CD for faster feedback. The tutorial aims to enhance test effectiveness, efficiency, and quality through proactive measures and regular process reviews.

Takeaways

• 😀 The 'Shift Left Approach' is a new topic in the ISTQB Foundation syllabus, emphasizing the importance of moving testing activities earlier in the software development life cycle.
• 🔍 Shift Left involves reviewing specifications for potential defects such as ambiguities, incompleteness, and inconsistencies to prevent issues early on.
• 📝 Writing test cases before code is written, and using a test harness during code implementation, is a key practice in achieving a Shift Left in testing.
• 🔄 Continuous Integration (CI) and Continuous Deployment (CD) are essential for providing fast feedback and automating component tests when source code is submitted.
• 🔍 Static analysis of source code should be completed prior to dynamic testing as part of the automated test process within CI/CD pipelines.
• 🚀 Performing non-functional testing at the component level is a form of Shift Left that can help identify issues early, preventing late-stage surprises.
• 💡 Shift Left can incur additional training and cost upfront but is expected to save effort and cost in the long run.
• 🤝 Stakeholder buy-in is crucial for the successful implementation of the Shift Left approach, requiring training and understanding of the initial investment.
• 🔧 Retrospectives are meetings held among team members and stakeholders to discuss what could be improved and how to prevent past mistakes in future projects.
• 📈 Retrospectives are critical for process improvement and should result in actionable recommendations that are followed up on.
• 👥 The benefits of conducting retrospectives include increased test effectiveness, better quality of testware, team bonding, improved test base quality, and enhanced cooperation between development and testing teams.

Q & A

What is the shift left approach in software testing?

The shift left approach in software testing involves moving testing activities earlier in the software development life cycle. This means conducting testing tasks such as reviewing specifications and writing test cases before the code is written to identify defects as early as possible.

Why is early testing important in the shift left approach?

Early testing is important in the shift left approach because it helps identify and fix defects sooner, which is cheaper and more efficient than fixing them later in the development process. This leads to better quality and more reliable software.

What are some practices to achieve a shift left in testing?

Some practices to achieve a shift left in testing include reviewing specifications from a testing perspective, writing test cases before code is written, using continuous integration (CI) and continuous delivery (CD) pipelines, and performing static analysis and non-functional testing early in the development process.

What is the role of CI/CD in the shift left approach?

In the shift left approach, CI/CD plays a crucial role by automating testing and integration processes. This ensures that tests are run automatically whenever code is checked into a repository, providing fast feedback and enabling early detection of defects.

How does static analysis fit into the shift left approach?

Static analysis involves examining the source code for potential defects without executing it. In the shift left approach, static analysis is performed early in the development process to identify issues such as code quality problems and security vulnerabilities before they can cause problems later.

What is the purpose of performing non-functional testing early in the development process?

Performing non-functional testing early helps identify performance, security, and other non-functional issues at the component level. This ensures that the system is more stable and has fewer issues when it reaches later stages of testing.

What are retrospectives and how do they contribute to process improvement?

Retrospectives are meetings held to review and discuss what was successful, what was not, and how to improve in future iterations. They involve team members and stakeholders discussing ways to enhance the process, leading to continuous improvement and better project outcomes.

What are the typical benefits of conducting retrospectives?

The typical benefits of conducting retrospectives include increased test effectiveness and efficiency, improved quality of testware, enhanced team bonding and learning, better cooperation between development and testing teams, and higher overall quality of the test bases.

When are retrospectives usually conducted?

Retrospectives can be conducted at the end of a project, an iteration, a release milestone, or as needed. In agile methodologies, they are often held at the end of each sprint or release.

What are the key questions discussed during retrospectives?

During retrospectives, the team typically discusses three key questions: What was successful and should be retained? What was not successful and can be improved? How to incorporate the improvements and retain the successes in the future?