When was the last time you reviewed a test script?
What is your company’s standard protocol for testing new IT systems?
Where can you find the test results and baseline requirements for your latest IT implementation?
Was that testing even completed?
If you don’t know, you’re not alone.
IT Project Managers often underestimate the importance, purpose and scope of testing in the rush to implement a new system. This omission does not just apply to the final test before release; it extends to the entire concept of project validation.
Testing is a specific activity, while validation is an ongoing process that occurs throughout the course of a project. In fact, testing is a small (but critical!) part of project validation.
Validation ensures that the aspects of design, implementation, testing, training, and operations align to the requirements set out at the initial stages of the project. Validation is completed, in part, through system testing at each phase of the project. Validation is also completed through the tracing of individual requirements against the elements evident in design, implementation, and even the test scripts and test cases.
Because every project has unique requirements, test cases will be different for each new project. While an organization may have a standard test script in place, that script must be traced back to the individual requirements of the project at hand in order for the testing to be meaningful and effective. Any priority requirement should be given its own test condition or test case.
Some tips to ensure complete validation through testing:
· When writing the work breakdown structure and project schedule, include time for validation through testing activities and requirements tracing at each phase.
· Delegate testing and validation to a project team member, such as the Business Analyst, to ensure that this work is completed.
· Write a Requirements Matrix, to indicate visually whether design/implementation/testing elements have indeed satisfied the project’s requirements.
· In the test script, indicate clearly who is to perform each task and what a successful test case looks like.
· Make sure that test documentation include the steps, the actions taken, and a clear result (pass or fail)
· Clean up the test environment afterwards, to prepare in advance for testing at the next phase.
Melanie Sucha, Information Management Specialist