Business & Integration IT Consultant
How to create an effective test plan
The trend nowadays is to develop software in an agile environment, where time spent on test planning can sound like a waste of time and resources. Traditional test plans seem to be too formal, whereas in Agile the focus is on flexibility, quick responses to change, and easy communication. On the other hand, a test plan helps us remember important project challenges that may be related to risks, costs, testing schedule, human resources, etc. Therefore, the test plan is important. A test plan does not have to be strict at all. In the early stages of a project, as we gather more information, we revise our plans. As the project evolves and the situation changes, we then adapt them. Even if the team’s work structure is based on rapid two-week iterations, for example, taking the time to develop a test plan can ensure that the project is completed on schedule and that the right amount of resources are allocated appropriately.
Test plan meaning
The test plan is an important key document in the software development process that ensures that the testing of a software product is done systematically and efficiently. It is a detailed plan that contains comprehensive information about the testing strategy and procedures and serves as a guide for the testing team throughout the development cycle. It specifies how the product is tested to verify that it conforms to the established requirements and specifications. It contains the testing strategy, establishes the testing objectives, the schedule of testing activities, and identifies the necessary resources to perform the testing. The test plan is a key document that ensures proper management and organization of testing activities within the project and enables effective communication with the entire team.
The test plan should be dynamic
The test plan can serve as the basic construct upon which the testing process will be implemented within the project. If properly developed, it can be revisited regularly or used as a template for other projects. However, the plan should not be treated as something that is set in stone. Especially when we consider the pace that most projects have: requirements are constantly changing, deliverables and deadlines change even on a sprint basis in some cases. The key is to write the plan so that it is resilient and flexible to change. How to do this? When it comes to test objectives, scope, and other specific details, these components usually survive change better than other components of the test plan. Schedules, people, and other details are sensitive to change. For these, it’s a good rule of thumb to follow: refer to them in a way that allows you to record changes without creating a new test plan.
How to get a test plan template
If you don’t have test plans from previous projects or the company doesn’t offer you any standards, it is possible to get patterns from various sources that are dedicated to software testing. Here you need to be careful what sources you draw from. Especially in the online environment, it is possible to find an immeasurable number of examples, but these can also contain major flaws and inaccuracies. There is also an international standard for testing documentation such as test plans, test cases and test procedures, namely ISO/IEC/IEEE 29119-3. Here you can find test plan standards for both traditional and agile testing / agile methodology in testing, as well as examples of both types of test plans. See an example of what a test plan should contain. To organize your test plan and individual test cases (test plan software) you can also use some of the available tools such as JMeter (see also Test plan in JMeter), or Testrail (e.g. Testrail test case example), Zephyr, QMetry.
7 steps in developing a test plan
Writing a test plan can seem like a rather complicated task. At this time, you are still getting to know the product, gathering information. There will probably be ambiguities and gaps in the first draft of the test plan. And that’s okay. The role of the test plan is primarily to get you, as its creator, and the whole team to think about the fundamental questions and future challenges.
When writing a test plan, it is also important to remember that its content should be easy to read and understandable for all stakeholders. These are not only members of the development team, but also management, customers and stakeholders. It is important that the document contains the necessary technical details, but in such a way that it can be understood by all. Otherwise, the document risks failing to provide the necessary information and being ignored.
1. Analyze the product
Before creating a test plan, it is necessary to spend some time analyzing the product. Understanding the product and being able to analyze it in depth will give you an advantage when evaluating its functionality and testing options. If you know the product well, you can begin to uncover its risks and potential problem areas. Focus group research can give you insight into how end users will interact with the product and what they expect from it. Last but not least, it is important to examine the business requirements, key objectives and goals of the product. These are some of the questions we ask at this point: Who are the end users of the product? What is the main purpose or goal of the product? How should the product work? What are the specific hardware and software requirements for the product?
2. Develop a test strategy (test plan vs test strategy)
It may seem at first glance that a test plan and strategy are the same thing, but there are a few significant differences between them. If a test plan answers the question “how to test?”, a test strategy can be thought of as a description of “what” and “why” in testing. A test strategy helps us determine the goals, nature, and uniqueness of the overall project. Only then we have the information to create a more detailed plan. A test strategy does not have a fixed content and structure. Although there are standards for its creation, it is much more important to tailor it to the requirements of the project and the stakeholders. These are the points it should contain:
- Approach to testing: Waterfall, Agile
- Levels of testing: component testing, integration testing, system testing
- Roles and responsibilities: responsibilities for different parts of the testing, how to communicate between team members and stakeholders.
- General schedules and plans
- Risks and their management: identification of the main risks associated with testing and a plan to manage and minimize them.
- Metrics and success measurement: defining metrics to evaluate testing success and monitor the performance of the testing process.
3. Clarify the objectives of testing
In this section, we seek to define the goals or purpose for the design and execution of tests. These objectives will depend on the purpose of the software, such as verifying that the software meets user requirements, identifying bugs in the software, or assessing the completeness of the software. Furthermore, these objectives will determine the type of tests to be performed and the way in which the test results will be analyzed and reported. Examples of general test objectives include:
- Product validation and verification: the goal of testing is to verify that the software works according to specifications and requirements, while meeting the user needs
- Identification of bugs and problems: the goal of testing is to identify bugs, incorrect behaviour, and other problems in the software.
- Quality management / Quality assurance: testing aims to ensure that the software reaches a certain level of quality and usability. This includes not only verifying functionality, but also aspects such as performance, security and usability.
- Communication: ensuring that all involved parties in the software development process communicate effectively, are informed about the goals and processes of testing
4. Determine test criteria (entry & exit criteria)
How do we know we are ready to start a testing activity? And how do we know we have completed the activity? The testing criteria serve as a standard that will be used to evaluate the results of the testing. There are two types of criteria:
- Entry criteria: define the conditions or requirements that must be met before software testing can begin. They may include the completion of certain development activities, the availability of necessary resources or the preparation of test environments.
- Exit criteria: these criteria specify the conditions that must be met before testing can be ended. Exit criteria are used to assess whether the objectives of the testing have been achieved and whether the testing is complete. They may include achieving a certain number of successful tests, meeting quality criteria such as software accuracy or performance, or other conditions specified in the test plan.
5. Draw up a timetable
In this phase of test planning, individual tasks are analyzed in detail and an estimate is made of how much time will be needed to complete them. When creating the schedule, it is important to take into account various factors such as team members’ working hours, project deadlines, and potential risks in order to set realistic expectations. In this way, you can avoid massive under- and overestimations in the schedule, and thus deadlines within the project.
This section also allows all involved parties to monitor the progress of the testing, allocate the necessary resources and keep costs within the planned budget.
6. Define the test environment and tools
When planning your test environment, it is important to identify the available hardware and software you will need to run your tests. Here the recommendation is in order, for the team to check the availability of the test equipment and tools that will be needed before testing begins. Why is this important:
- to make new members joining the team understand the specifics of the project,
- to reuse it in other projects,
- to share the test plan in crisis with other teams that might be working on similar projects,
- to communicate tool purchasing needs, environment setup with project managers or administrators.
7. Define the expected testing outputs
Determining test outputs involves defining the items that should be delivered at the end of the testing process. Typically, test outputs include test cases, bug reports, test plans, test reports, etc. These outputs are created during testing and support various aspects of software development such as documentation, project management and analysis. By defining deliverables, you have the opportunity to provide stakeholders with a clear view of what results can be expected from the testing process. This makes it easier to evaluate the effectiveness of testing and determine whether the stated testing objectives have been achieved.
Conclusion
We hope this article has convinced you that preparing a test plan is worth the time and effort because it makes the testing process more efficient. Creating a well-structured test plan helps to align activities and anticipate the necessary steps and resources to successfully complete the project.
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