using your testing mindset to explore requirements
TRANSCRIPT
Using testing mindset
to explore requirements
Toronto Agile Conference
November 14, 2016
Janet Gregory and Ardita Karaj
A little about us …
Tweet about us @janetgregoryca and @ardita_k
Backlog… so?
I hear about …..
Story Mapping...
But how to slice the first sprint/release?
MVP...But how to identify the first one?
SFD …(Sh$%%y First Draft)
Yeah, but where to begin?
Exploratory testing is simultaneously designing and executing tests to learn about the system, using your insights from the last experiment to
inform the next.
~ Elisabeth Hendrickson, author of Explore It!
To distinguish good Exploratory Testing as a disciplined form of testing:
Using a wide variety of analysis/testing techniques to target vulnerabilities from multiple perspectives.
Using charters to focus effort on those vulnerabilities that are of most interest to stakeholders.
Two key things
Essential elements
Techniques- Understanding your Ecosystem
- Exploring different Scenarios
- Alternate paths
- Chartering for focus
Execute
Learn
Design
Steer experiment
"The ecosystem of your system includes the environment in which your software lives, all the interfaces into your software, and all the external dependencies. "
~Elisabeth Hendrickson
We had a dinner together
And decided to use it as an example
Our example ecosystem
- We were starving!
- We were overwhelmed with 8 pages of menu
- We were the first in the restaurant and couldn’t see what others had ordered on their tables
- We didn’t know how BiG the tapas portions were
- We were not interested in a dessert
- We didn’t know much about each-other's food preferences
- Sangria was very easy to agree to start!
First instinct was ..
1. ‘Pre-set’ dinners, but …..TOLEDO COMBO [ 7 TAPAS TOTAL ]
My Mother’s Chicken Croquettes, Alioli Sauce
Traditional Garlic Shrimps, Amontillado Sherry
Grilled St Peter Fish,[ White Fish ] Piquillo Pepper Sauce
Grilled Fresh Veggies Topped With Goat Cheese, Garlic Bread
Grilled Beef Tenderloin Topped With Portobello, Shiitake Mushroom Sauce
Pork Tenderloin Topped With Madeira Wine Sauce
House Style Paella: Made With Shrimp, Scallops, Calamari, Mussel, Chicken, Chorizo, Saffron Rice
2. A thought was to go across the street
but.. we had already ordered the Sangria!
We decided to explore the ecosystem a bit better.
So we mapped the ecosystem
Janet and Ardi
Starving
Portion size?
Pre-set menu
Á la carte menu
Go across the street
…….
Your turn to explore your ecosystem
Problem:
You need to build an application to manage a baseball league for children
Users
administrators ,coaches, parents, umpires, children on the teams
Your users, main needs and backlog
Main needs:
- Administration
- Team management
- Games management
Product backlog
- is on the handout
Exercise 5 MinUnderstand your backlog
What's your ecosystem?
- What environment?
- What interfaces?
- Any external dependency?
Explore anyway you want.
Our problem:
What to eat from a tapas menu for 2 people
Our Scenarios:1. Use the pre-set menus with some defined choices
2. Each would chose a number of tapas and not share
3. We would chose some tapas and share
4. …..
From ecosystem to Scenarios
We chose our Scenario
Janet and Ardi
Starving
Share
Portion size?
Pre-set menu
Á la carte menu
Not shareDessert
Go across the street
…….
Our example continued …Next …
We had to choose a Scenario for our basic needs
- DECIDED 5 DISHES WOULD BE GOOD SINCE WE COULD ORDER MORE IF WE WERE STILL HUNGRY
- No desserts yet
The core: Paella
- Each of us would chose 2 others
Exercise 5 Min: Your turn What’s your approach
- What are your Scenarios?
- What are the important things for you?
Back to our example
Taking Alternative paths
while executing and learning
Vegetarian? Sea food?
Chicken?
Lamb?
Meat?
Beef?
Fish?
Shrimp?
Mushrooms?
Dessert?
Nah..
Carrots?
Simultaneous execution and learning
1. Janet chose 2 of her favourites from the shrimp selection
2. and then asked Ardita which she preferred
Exercise 5 Min: use this technique of alternative paths
- What are your alternative paths?
- How deep do you want to go on each?
- Do you still remember the important things you considered when you picked the Scenario?
- What can you execute and learn?
Our example again: Designing charters for focus
Exercise 5 Min: use this technique to create charters
- What do you want to discover?
- What resources you have?
- What Information do you want to focus on?
Wrap up
1. Ecosystem2. Scenarios3. Alternative paths4. Charters for focus
Share what you decided to do on your first MVP/Release/SFD/Sprint
Execute
Learn
Design
Steer experiment
