1. Align with Stakeholder Expectations 2. Risk Assessment 3. Test Environment Setup 4. Compliance and Standards 5. Feedback Loops 6. Define Success Criteria

Clearly state the purpose of the testing. What are you aiming to validate? This could include verifying functionality, performance, security, and usability. List specific objectives, such as ensuring all features work as intended, identifying and fixing bugs, and validating performance under expected loads.

Writing a test plan that aligns with project goals and scope involves a comprehensive understanding of project requirements. Define clear objectives, prioritize critical functionalities, and consider project timelines. Tailor test cases to cover key scenarios that align with user expectations. Regularly communicate with stakeholders to validate test coverage and ensure alignment with evolving project goals. A well-documented, flexible test plan facilitates effective collaboration and contributes to achieving project objectives within the defined scope.

Setting clear goals from the start is crucial to making sure testing is successful. The goals used need to be measurable, focused, and in line with the overall project need. This ensures that the software aligns with user requirements, industry standards, and performance benchmarks.

1. Understand & Define: Grasp project goals, functionalities and limitations. Clearly define the testing scope (what will be tested). 2. Set Objectives: Establish what you want to achieve with testing (e.g., find critical bugs, ensure core features work). 3. Strategize Testing: Choose the testing methods (manual, automation) that best fit the project and goals. 4. Plan Resources: Estimate time, tools, and testers needed to execute the plan effectively. 5. Design Test Cases: Create detailed steps to test functionalities and identify potential issues. 6. Consider Environment & Data: Plan how to set up testing environments and prepare relevant test data. 8. Communicate & Adapt: Regularly discuss the plan with stakeholders.

The best way to identify scope is to understand the feature being created. The easiest way to do this is to keep close working relationships with the product and project leadership. Whenever you need to know more, you can always tap them on the shoulder. As a best practice, a team should move toward excellence in documentation, however. Writing a clear spec in simple, precise language is an art that a team can master iteratively. Good documentation saves hours of conversations.

List all the features, functionalities, and components that will be tested. Clearly state what will not be tested and why. This helps manage expectations and focus efforts.

One thing I have found helpful in understanding test scope, is to determine which parts of the project the team is going to test, and which won't. We analyze the project charter, as well as the features list provided by the project manager. This ensures that our testing efforts zero in on the most important things needed to meet the project goals.

Agora que compreendemos o objetivo e temos as informações necessárias, precisamos entender todo o escopo. Se o foco for no desenvolvimento front-end, o que precisamos considerar? Acessibilidade, usabilidade e responsividade são aspectos fundamentais. É recomendável a consulta da norma ISO 25010 para mais detalhes. No caso do desenvolvimento back-end, os aspectos cruciais incluem segurança, desempenho e acessibilidade. É importante? Defina o nível de validação para o projeto, baseando-se na criticidade do mesmo e no impacto ao cliente.

To define the test scope, I envision it as a treasure map, charting every feature and module to explore while marking the boundaries of what’s excluded. Using the project scope as my compass, I map out these areas like constellations in the night sky. This cosmic approach ensures our testing is both thorough and aligned with the project’s goals.

Describe the overall approach to testing. This includes the types of testing to be performed (e.g., unit, integration, system, acceptance), the testing levels, and the testing techniques to be used. Identify the resources required, including tools, environments, and personnel.

The testing strategy covers the game plan of the project. This will help us to plan, execute, and report tests. This will also help us to determine which tools to use through the testing process. This will of course need to align with the overall goal and plan of the project.

-> Decide on the types of testing necessary for the project, such as unit testing, integration testing, system testing, and acceptance testing. Based on the project requirements, include specialized testing types like security, performance, and usability testing as needed. -> Define how these tests will be layered or staged throughout the development lifecycle.

É importante destacar a relevância do TMMi, que permite medir a maturidade dos processos de teste. Nossa estratégia, embora fortemente fundamentada no passo anterior, avança ao detalhar aspectos específicos. Por exemplo, será necessário o uso de tabelas de decisão? Existem combinações de resultados a serem consideradas? Quais técnicas de teste serão aplicadas, como o teste de valor limite? Por esses motivos, é crucial que os Engenheiros de Qualidade (QEs) leiam e revisem o Syllabus da ISTQB.

A well-defined test strategy indicates how, when, where, and with what the software will be tested against its requirements and standards of quality. This includes the objectives, scope, time, resource and tool availability, environments, and risk management strategies. A clear test strategy enables the team to align their efforts, identify risks earlier, optimize resource allocation, and deliver quality software that meets stakeholders' expectations.

Defining the test resources is a critical part of the test plan as it ensures that you have all the necessary elements in place to carry out the testing activities effectively. Test resources typically include personnel, tools, environments, and any other necessary infrastructure or documentation.

When crafting your test plan, prioritize the test resource section. Identify and acknowledge your testing team's skills, tools, and training needs. Estimate time commitments and budget wisely for tools and training. A well-prepared resource section is key to a successful testing mission! Estimate the time each team member will dedicate, envisioning it as their testing hours in a time-bound quest. Budget wisely, factoring in costs for tools, training, and team time – essential fuel for the testing rocket. With these considerations, your test resource section will be streamlined, ready to launch your testing mission to success!

In my experience, defining test resources is critical for successful software testing. It's not just about listing assets, but also ensuring that they align closely with the project goals and test strategy. For example, once at work, we faced challenges when our test environment did not match the production environment, which resulted in discrepancies in test results. Since then, I have learned to meticulously define resources, including the test team composition, environment setup, data requirements, tool selection, and budget allocation. By utilizing resource plans and past project insights, we can ensure smoother testing processes and more accurate results.

I carefully identify and allocate all necessary test resources: assembling a skilled team, setting up a realistic test environment, and selecting appropriate data and tools. I ensure that these resources align with our test objectives and strategy by reviewing the resource plan, environment specifications, and tool inventories. This ensures we have everything needed to achieve accurate and effective test results.

To plan a test schedule, first define the scope of testing and identify the features or functionalities you'll assess. Then, schedule the tests themselves, allocating realistic timeframes for each based on complexity. Factor in buffer time for bug fixes or retesting, and establish clear deadlines aligned with your project's overall timeline. This will ensure efficient test execution and a smooth launch.

Planning the test schedule is a key element in crafting a test plan that aligns with project goals and scope. By carefully outlining the timing of testing activities, including milestones and deadlines, the test plan ensures synchronization with the project's overall timeline. This approach allows for a systematic integration of testing phases, aligning them strategically with the project's development milestones. A well-structured test schedule helps manage resources efficiently, identify potential bottlenecks, and ensures comprehensive test coverage within the defined project scope. In essence, meticulous planning of the test schedule contributes to the overall alignment of the test plan with the broader goals and scope of the project.

One of the most difficult and comprehensive parts of testing, is to compile the test plan. A detailed summary of everything needed to test the software should be in one place, and visible to the project team for review and feedback. Previous plans can be referenced and lessons learned from previous testing plans can be utilized for successful test plan creation.

The software development process has been evolving from waterfall to agile, from agile to incorporate DevOps and now we have a major change happening with how the teams and companies are starting to implement AI in the daily work Considering this the thing we have to start doing today is to document in a format that helps the test plan be ingested into a Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG). This way we can take the next step and build a smart repository orchestrated by an AI Agent that we can query the historical data of the last project, check trends, and ask for suggestions on how to plan based on the history of a product and test results.

-Define testing goals and align them with project requirements and user expectations. -Identify critical features for functional and non-functional testing. Prioritize user impact, security, and business processes. -Choose relevant test types based on project needs. -Set specific goals for defects, new feature validation, and test coverage. -Outline test inclusions (modules, scenarios) and exclusions (non-critical features) to prevent scope growing. -Define entry and exit criteria. -Document test cases, scripts, bug reports, and summary reports. -Validate the plan with stakeholders (devs, PMs, BAs, etc). - Adjust the plan for project changes. This ensures testing is goal-aligned, scoped properly, and adaptable, leading to quality software.

Em ambientes de desenvolvimento de software, a cultura de qualidade desempenha um papel fundamental na concepção e execução de planos de testes eficientes. Estabelecer uma mentalidade proativa em relação à prevenção de defeitos desde as fases iniciais do ciclo de desenvolvimento promove uma abordagem mais robusta na identificação e correção de potenciais problemas. Esta cultura permeia a criação de casos de teste abrangentes, a priorização criteriosa de requisitos e a busca constante pela satisfação do cliente, culminando em entregas de software de alta qualidade. A integração de uma cultura de qualidade sólida na elaboração do plano de testes é, portanto, um imperativo para o sucesso e excelência no desenvolvimento de software.

To align a test plan with project goals and scope, define objectives, identify scope, and develop strategies. Engage stakeholders for input, manage risks, and ensure traceability to project requirements. Maintain flexibility to accommodate changes, foster communication, and establish metrics for progress tracking. This approach ensures testing efforts directly contribute to project success while adapting to evolving needs.

The project timeline should inform the depth and number of test deliverables planned. A short timeline may not leave room for automation or low-level test cases, you may need to prepare test checklists and rely on experience-based testing to verify and validate the features. The test team's available resources and capacity should be considered, it is important to set realistic goals and expectations for the test team. A smaller team will need to focus and prioritize efforts based on the criticality or risk level of the modules in the project. The test plan should be documented in an easy-to-understand format and shared with the rest of the team and product team to ensure everyone’s on the same page and goals are aligned.

Navigating the subtleties of each project and adapting your approach accordingly can be challenging. That's why I highly recommend incorporating the principles of context-driven testing. By embracing this approach, you can customize your strategies to meet the unique challenges and objectives you face. I understand that it's not always easy to trust in a personalized approach, but I genuinely believe that context-driven testing enhances the effectiveness of testing and fosters a deeper understanding of the project's complexities. So, have confidence in the power of context-driven testing to guide your testing efforts with empathy, precision, and purpose.