TestingDojo - the future of testing effectivly?

This past weekend I sat down together with several of my colleagues to run a sorts of Testing Dojo, where the goal was to look at an e-commerce payment platform and come up with ideas and feedback on what could be done better, faster and easier from a user point of view.

During the Testing Dojo, each person was given a specific role and we began by designating specific areas to individuals (rather than pairing, which is another way to perform Testing Dojos), and at the same time utilizing exploratory and usability testing while embracing a SBTM perspective in order to make the intangibles more tangible.

Although structured exploratory testing might seem like a contradiction-in-terms, "structure" does not mean the testing is pre-scripted. Rather, it allows us to have a set of expectations for what kind of work will be done and how it will be reported using "sessions".

Initially we spent a great deal of time summarizing what needed to be tested from a user perspective, rather than that of a customer, allowing for time estimates, adding possible risks to each area and continuously updating this list as new areas materialized during the execution.

The Testing Dojo should be seen as a meeting point where testers come together to work on a specific challenge. It can consist of testing a product, or by generating test ideas for particular software, or even exercise bug reporting.

Testing Dojos are a great way to train testers to the profession and allow for collaborative manner.

Testing Dojos should focus on being concise, easy to consume and understand.

Needless to say, spending time this weekend in a testing dojo was a great way for us to build the team, while at the same time highlighting areas of potential improvement for the customer.

About the author

Johan Sandström is a larger than life character, who has several years of international experience within test and requirements. On his spare time he is very active in social media and spends a great deal coaching various social networks in test and agile methodologies, both as speaker and participant.