"Don't Be the Quality Gatekeeper: Just Hold Up the Mirror" - - PDF document

T7

Track 9/30/2010 11:15 AM

"Don't Be the Quality Gatekeeper: Just Hold Up the Mirror"

Presented by: Mfundo Nkosi Micro to Mainframe

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Mfundo Nkosi

A senior test manager at Micro to Mainframe, Mfundo Nkosi has been in test management for more than four years and has managed a variety of projects of varied team sizes and complexities, many in the financial sector. He has worked as a test consultant in many

• rganizations, some in which test processes were either non-existent or simply ignored. Mfundo

is currently creating training materials for test management and writing a test management framework, describing ways to incorporate it into a test plan. The Micro to Mainframe Web site is mtom.co.za.

Don’t be a Quality

Presenter: Mfundo Nkosi - Company: Micro to Mainframe – South Africa

Don’t be a Quality Gatekeeper

Just hold up the mirror

Don’t be a Quality Gatekeeper

Just hold up the mirror

Concepts Concepts

Concepts

1. Quality Gatekeeper 2. Quality Police 3. Influencer & Decision Maker 4 Daily “Little” Mirrors 4. Daily Little Mirrors 5. The Hubble Telescope

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Concept 1. Quality Gate keeper Quality Gate keeper

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Quality Gate keeper

From: G. Keeper Sent: 29 June 2010 12:48 PM To: Team Subject: RE: Test Closure Report j p Hi All I would like to inform the project team that all 3 Testing cycles have been

• completed. All the exit criteria set in the test plan has been met. Testing is

happy to sign-off this release and it can be shipped to production. Kind Regards

• Mr. G. Keeper

Test Manager CompanyX Testing Division

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Benefits

• Music to stakeholders ears
• Hero

Quality Gate keeper

• Hero

Danger

• In the event of failures in production
• Hero to Zero “ How was this tested”
• Sole responsibility for quality of code

p y q y Misconceptions/ Myth

• Exit criteria equals exhaustive testing. (can be exhausting)
• What is the definition of done

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Concept 2. Quality Police Quality Police

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Quality Police

From: Paul Sent: 29 June 2010 12:48 PM To: Team Subject: RE: Test Closure Report Hi All I would like to inform the project team that all 3 phases of testing have been

• concluded. As communicated this morning in the meeting, the testing team will not

be able to sign-off this release, due to the fact that the exit criteria that was set in the test plan was not met. You can however go ahead with implementation of the release but please be aware that Quality Assurance did not sign-off and will not be held accountable should issues occur in production. Kind Regards Paul Iceman Test Manager CompanyX Testing Division

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Benefits

• CYA

Quality Police

Danger

• Detachment from total deliverable
• Us against them culture
• Big business picture knowledge
• Tester don’t know
• Sponsor forgotten the bigger picture

p g gg p Misconceptions / Myth

• Testing has mandate to either pass or fail code
• What is the mandate of testing ??.

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Concept 3. Influencer & Decision Influencer & Decision Maker Maker

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Influencer & Decision Maker

From: Nelson M Sent: 29 June 2010 12:48 PM To: Team Subject: RE: Test Closure Report j p Hi All I would like to inform you we have come to the end of the testing cycle. Please find attached a production readiness state achieved report (mirror) which reflect what was tested, the findings of the Test, what works and what doesn’t. I have scheduled a follow up meeting with all the stakeholder’s where we can go through the report and agree on what can be deferred and what needs to be fixed I will through the report and agree on what can be deferred and what needs to be fixed. I will appreciate if all the representatives from the development, infrastructure, production support, business analysis and business ownership/ sponsor team can be present. Kind Regards Nelson M- Test Manager – CompanyX -Testing Division

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Benefit

• Inclusive
• Joint responsibility

Influencer & Decision Maker

• Risk of failure shared & reduced

Danger

• Paralysis by analysis
• Smoothing things over (“Group think” vs. “Group thunk”)
• Invincible mentality (Limits creativity)
• Invincible mentality (Limits creativity)
• Forget, ignore the Roll back /disaster scenario

Misconceptions/ Myth

• Testing weak, easily swayed

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Concept 4. Daily (“Little”) Mirrors Daily (“Little”) Mirrors

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Mirror 1.

Risk Management plan g p

Priority Risk Description Impact H,M,L Probability H,M,L Response / Contingency Plan Control Comments

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Daily Reporting

Mirror 2.

Daily Reporting

• Issues
• Risks
• Concerns

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

• Risk log

More Mirrors

• Risk log
• Issues & Concerns log
• Lesson Learnt
• Decisions

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Concept 5. The Hubble Telescope The Hubble Telescope

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

The Hubble Telescope

Link to envisage end game (“vision”) Mirror reflection Clear view Abilit t k d i i Ability to make decisions

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Don’t be a Quality Gatekeeper

Just hold up the mirror

Benefits Benefits

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Benefits

• More agile
• Self reflection (“Act”)
• Meet, overcome problems earlier
• Things happen quicker.
• Collective decision making

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Don’t be a Quality Gatekeeper

Just hold up the mirror

Conclusion Conclusion

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Conclusion

1. Quality Gatekeeper

• the ones who raise & close the gate

2. Quality police 3. Non threatening communication of status 4. Maintaining Credibility and Influence 5. Maintaining daily logs 6. Writing an informative mirror report

Author: Mfundo Nkosi ‐ Company: Micro to Mainframe ‐ Web: www.mtom.co.za ‐ Date: September 30, 2010

Don’t be a Quality

Conclusion

Don t be a Quality Gatekeeper

Just hold up the mirror