1. Confidential
The Test Plan Redefined
A container for information or a vessel in the journey towards
knowledge
Rev PA1 2011-10-26 1
2. The 10 Minute Test Plan [2]
James Whittaker describes a problem where test plans are
made and then never used again
Resources are spent creating test plans that after creation
have no informative value
By forcing testers to create a test plan in 10 minutes he tries to
boil down to the core of what is important and necessary in a
test plan
Only information that is necessary for the day-to-day work of a
tester
3. Google Test Analytics [1]
A group at Google set about creating a methodology that can
replace a test plan, which they have called ACC.
It needed to be comprehensive, quick, actionable, and have
sustained value to a project,
The ACC methodology creates a matrix that describes your
project completely; several projects that have used it
internally at Google have found coverage areas that were
missing in their conventional test plans.
4. What is the purpose of a Test Plan?
Is the purpose to continuously provide information about the
project? Is it an automatic risk matrix?
Or is it a tool to support the tester in a journey towards better
understanding and knowledge about how to work more
efficiently and effectively?
There is a difference between information and knowledge [3]
If we only care about information, it could be argued that
Googles approach is the most effective
6. Competence
If the goal of the test plan is to help the tester on the journey
towards knowledge, an automated risk matrix may not be the
best way forward
Of course this requires a will to improve and learn by the tester
If test plans are all copy-pastes of each other then of course
they will not facilitate learning
But if the tester takes the creation of the test plan seriously,
and uses it as a tool to learn, then it should be structured in a
way that facilitates learning
8. Test Plan Structure to facilitate learning
A test plan should be the documentation of a discussion
between testers and developers working in the same project – it
can not be the work of a single mind
A test plan should be updated when the testers get more
practical experience from test execution and development
A test plan should include visualizations to facilitate learning
The test plan should be an instrument which senior testers use
to transfer knowledge to junior testers
9. Dreyfus Model of Skill Acquisition [4]
Confidential
1. Novice 4. Proficient
"rigid adherence to taught rules or plans" holistic view of situation
no exercise of "discretionary judgment" prioritizes importance of aspects
"perceives deviations from the normal
2. Advanced beginner pattern"
limited "situational perception" employs maxims for guidance, with
meanings that adapt to the situation at
all aspects of work treated separately hand
with equal importance
5. Expert
3. Competent
transcends reliance on rules, guidelines,
"coping with crowdedness" (multiple and maxims
activities, accumulation of information)
"intuitive grasp of situations based on
some perception of actions in relation to deep, tacit understanding"
goals
has "vision of what is possible"
deliberate planning
uses "analytical approaches" in new
formulates routines situations or in case of problems
Rev PA1 2011-10-26 9
10. Test Plan Structure to facilitate learning
A test plan should ask questions which forces the tester to
think
But there must also be a framework to support the tester and
facilitate learning
Examples and standardized lists help the tester to start
thinking about the right questions, but the test plan still needs
flexibility to allow the tester to write down what is important
for learning
Allow for different levels of skilled testers to use the test plan
in a way that allows for them to improve and learn – guidelines
and help for beginners, flexibility for experienced testers
11. Conclusion
Depending on the purpose of the test plan it can be structured
in different ways
If the test plan is only a container for information – an
automatically updated risk matrix, then you have one
approach
If the test plan is a vessel in the testers journey towards
knowledge, then you have another approach
It is important to understand the pros and cons with both
approaches, and understand the difference between
knowledge and information
![The 10 Minute Test Plan [2]
James Whittaker describes a problem where test plans are
made and then never used again
Resources are spent creating test plans that after creation
have no informative value
By forcing testers to create a test plan in 10 minutes he tries to
boil down to the core of what is important and necessary in a
test plan
Only information that is necessary for the day-to-day work of a
tester](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)