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Testing is a Team Effort

Testing is a team effort- that's my perception at Dovetail.  Lisa Crispin explains this well in an interview by Carl Erickson. 

I previously worked at a company where the developer to tester ratio was very large approximately 13:1.  Our test coverage was low, as was the quality of our tests.  With this developer-to-tester ratio, it was an impossible task to keep up with every project, and ensure that a certain level of quality was behind each project.

At Dovetail, the ratio is 5:1, a much more realistic ratio.  Both the developers and testers view our projects as a team effort.  We don't have the "throw it over the wall to QA" mentality that many other shops have.  In fact, the developers have assisted in the writing of tests when testers have gotten a little behind, gone on vacation, or felt the need to validate product quality.

When testing is a team effort, the quality of the software improves.  Team members- developers and testers- are concerned about delivering a quality piece of software, which, in the end, is good business cent$.

Posted: Friday, February 16, 2007 8:13 AM by jdarling
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Comments

Marci said:

Hey, I agree that it is a team effort.  In the fast paced world of technology, I wonder if it is advantageous to have what I call "testing royalty".  These are the people who, through example, show others how to make quality software and share their insights on how to test something extensively.   This was always the question on my mind.  When are we done testing?

# February 17, 2007 11:31 AM

jdarling said:

Marci, I agree that testers have a responsibility to share their knowledge of testing to developers.  And, sharing of information should be a two-way street between testers and developers.  In my experience though, not every developer has been interested in learning the art of testing.

I see two possible resolves to achieve a team effort.  For new team members, I look to management to select the right person(s) for the team.  For existing team members, I look to the team to use the power of influence to show the benefits of testing as a team effort to that person(s).

And you bring the proverbial question, "When are we done testing?"  As good tester's know, testing is never done.  But, we live in a world where deadlines/delivery dates are real.  As a tester, you must collaborate with your customer to define exit criteria.

# February 19, 2007 9:25 AM