Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter
7
Software Testing
Project Execution
In an ideal world, project planning would be the main task and project execution
would be like pressing a button to start and finish it. Alas, this is not the case. In
many industries execution is still the king. It is because despite all the advances
in automation and standardization of process, executing any plan is still difficult.
The road to execution is laden with unimaginable pitfalls and unavoidable circum-
stances which ensure that execution is a challenge and not a walk in the park.
Imagine you have made a good project plan, you have a good set of people in
hand, you have good experience in handling testing projects, you have a good repu-
tation with your customer, you are dedicated to the task, and you are determined
to excel in the task.
So you think you have a good test project plan with most of the risks covered,
good effort estimation done, and project strategies well defined. Well, only 5%
of your job is done. Now you should be ready for the remaining 95% of the job.
And this part of the job is more challenging, because you will face real problems,
issues, challenging situations, and conflicts that will require your tact, patience,
ability to make fast decisions in stressful situations, good reporting, and many
more qualities.
If you are working on an iterative and incremental development model such as
product development, then you will need to spend more time in understanding the
architectural and functional model of the application as well as development frame-
work so that for new releases you will be able to plan for testing without the need to
have elaborate requirements and specifications for the new release (which are scarce
commodities in such environments). So if you are new to this environment, then you
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