Volume 9 Number 3 • 3rd Quarter 2008 Feature Article

Software Testing Triage

The Scenario

Here is a scenario all testers are familiar with. A lot of work has been done to move the organisation’s thinking from traditional waterfall thinking to more improved v-model thinking.

Project managers engage with the test team, which has grown from 1 - 3 certified software testers. They see the value of testing and even devote time to testing in the project schedule. But they don’t inform the tester on time. If the project management methodology has 5 phases (initiate, define, design, develop, implement), the tester is notified at the end of the develop phase.

The project office only just started realising that projects that were tested did much better and generated fewer support calls after implementation than the rest.

The other problem is that the tester : project ratio is 1 : 70 per annum. The average project length is 3 - 6 months from initiation to implementation. The project is either an enhancement to an existing system, a software upgrade, or the implementation of a commercial system customised for a client.

Adopting a “bad planning on your side does not constitute an emergency on mine” attitude doesn’t help. Why not? Let’s say that you, as the driver of your vehicle, failed to plan before you left for your destination. You get lost, make an illegal u-turn and get hit by a bus. Severely injured you end up in the emergency room and the doctor asks you what happened. What if he responded: “I’m not going to help you because you didn’t plan. Not my emergency!! Sorry! Black tag for you…”

Enter triage

Triage: a term used to describe the process used by medical professionals to sort patients according to need and when resources are insufficient to provide assistance. Patients are sorted and tagged in terms of treatment priority, based on injuries:

• Black: severely injured– they WILL die within hours or days. They are given pain medication to ease their dying.
• Red: severely injured but can be saved with immediate treatment.
• Yellow: condition is stable but needs to be observed by a professional and “re-triaged” (re-assessed over time to check if the condition deteriorates). Will need hospital care, and under normal circumstances they’ll need immediate attention.
• Green: these patients will require a doctor’s care, but not immediately. The patient may even be sent home and asked to return the next day.
• White: minor injuries and patient will benefit from first aid. A doctor’s care isn’t required.

Testing triage

As with an emergency room situation where ALL the patients believe they are in dire need of medical attention, ALL the projects believe to be in dire need of testing. Note that all cases receive treatment for their injuries, but the administration of the treatment differs.

The following elements need to be assessed:

1. Project size – Is it big or small? This depend on several factors – budget, how many resources are needed, how many systems are involved and when it will be completed?
2. Project type – Is delivery dependent on the implementation of a COTS (Commercial, Off the Shelf) system or on the completion of development prior to implementation?
3. Project cost – Is it at risk of running over budget? Is the project bleeding cash due to time, resources or quality-related issues?
4. Project time – Are timelines constrained or affected? Does this result in more deliverables becoming critical?
5. Project quality – Is enough time and attention given to quality? Does the schedule allow for test planning and execution?
6. Project risk – Is it perceived as a low, medium or high risk project? If the project cost, time and quality is affected the project automatically becomes high risk.
7. Project progress – In what stage is the project at the time of the engagement with the test team? If the project is in a too-late stage, this will affect the project test priority.

With this framework, testing triage is applied:

• Black: the project is experiencing too much difficulty and unless there aren't any other projects, this project will not get priority. No amount of testing will add value.
• Red: the project is experiencing a large amount of difficulty and should get immediate priority. Urgent test expertise required
• Yellow: the project is experiencing difficulty and any of the variables may change to either improve or worsen it. Urgent test expertise required.
• Green: the project is at risk, but due to the variables being favourable, testing can be done using the Testing Toolkit, unless it is not "off the shelf".
• White: the project is not at risk and, due to its size, testing can be performed by either the System Engineer or a Business Analyst.

The testing first aid kit

The testing first aid kit consists of various tools and props in case of and depending on the severity of the emergency. The testing first aid kit cannot be used on projects with a red or yellow priority as these types of project emergencies require detailed and specialised attention.

The testing first aid kit contains:

• standard test plan in template form (based on IEEE 829, but slightly varied to accommodate as little as possible intervention by a test professional)
• test case template
• defect log template and defect logging sheets
• standard set of test cases. The test cases can be used as needed. The test cases and test plan can be built relatively easily and the test approach can be implemented quickly. Testing the solution should seldom take longer than 8 hours.

Once bitten, twice shy

The idea behind testing triage is to teach. Sufficient planning is required to implement a test approach, as sufficient time is needed to execute tests. With the emergency approach, every “better late than never” project gets the same treatment. The treatment, of course, is based on a minimum standard as well as a test priority. The expectation is to ensure that the project manager learns to cater for every eventuality in terms of assuring the quality of the system delivered via the project.

Martin Byker MBCS
Test Manager, Dimension Data

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