2 Days  

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This course is designed to teach participants how to design and implement processes for quality assurance and quality control. The benefit from these processes is the continued quality of existing systems during ongoing operations and maintenance.  

This session is appropriate for software developers and managers, quality assurance and testing personnel, and systems support professionals. The following outline is a basic treatment of the topic. It is possible to expand on other essential topics by adding modules such as Unit Testing and Test Tools on a separate day of instruction.  

The workshop contains two team-based exercises which focus on having the participants write processes for ongoing testing and change control using their own organization’s unique attributes.

Return on Investment

• Learn how to design and implement effective QA and QC processes which will find defects throughout the project lifecycle.
• Understand the key issues in designing and implementing processes.
• Learn how to use processes effectively to keep a system validated, even during changes.
• Get the most out of your existing investment in testing and how to leverage that investment.
• Advance your career by reinforcing your testing expertise.

Who Will Benefit

• Managers
• QA Managers
• Test Managers
• User Managers
• Business Analysts
• Software Developers
• System Support Personnel
• Test analysts
• Testers

 

Prior testing or QA knowledge is not a prerequisite.

 

Program Information

This course is presented on an in-house basis only unless offered as a special public course. Contact us for information about how to bring this course into your organization. 

 

Content and Structure 

Module 1 - Stages of Process Maturity  (30 mins.)

• What is Process Maturity?
• Exploring the Capability Maturity Model (CMM)
• Other Views of Process Maturity
• What are the Results of Process Maturity?
• What’s the First Step?
  

Module 2 - Exploring the Basics of Testing  (1 hr.)

• Terminology
• The Phases of Testing
• The Benefits of Full Life-cycle Testing
• Test Strategy and Planning
• The Top 10 Problems of Software Testing
• Effective Test Tools
  
  

Module 3 - Walkthroughs (2 hrs.)

• What is a Walkthrough?
• The Walkthrough Process
• Roles and Responsibilities
• Keys to Success
• Exercise: Perform a Simple Walkthrough
  
  

Module 4 - Test Planning Overview ( 1.5 hrs.)

• Basic Testing Principles
• The Basic Testing Process
• Defining a Test Strategy
• Defining Test Objectives
• Writing the High-Level Test Plan
• Test Planning Guidelines
• Exercise: Write a Test Strategy Based on a Case Study

 

Module 5 - Test Execution (1 hr.)

 

• Manual vs. Automated Testing
• Major Test Automation Issues
• "Top 10" Test Tools
• Manual Methods
• How to Create and Maintain Test Data
  
  

Module 6 - How to Build a Process for Continuous Quality Assurance and Quality Control (2 hrs.)

• The Essential Elements of a Process
• The Workbench Approach
• How to Build Your Own Processes
• Defect Tracking and Measurements
• Critical Success Factors
• Exercise:  Define a Basic Testing Process For Your Organization
  
  

Module 7 - Regression Testing  (30 mins.)

• What is Regression Testing?
• Why Perform Regression Testing?
• The Process for Regression Testing
• Regression Testing Issues
• How Much Regression Testing is Enough?
  
  

Module 8 - Configuration Management (1 Hr.)

• What is Configuration Management?
• What is the Scope of Configuration Management?
• The Objectives of Configuration Management
• Why Should You Care About Configuration Management?
• What's Required for Effective Configuration Management?
• A Basic Process for Configuration Management
• Configuration Management Tools
• Ongoing Validation
• An Ongoing Validation Process Using Configuration Management
• Follow-up Testing Using CM Data
• Summary and Resources
  
  

Module 9 - Change Management (1 hr.)

• The Objectives
• The Basic Process
• Tools
• Exercise:  Define a Basic Change Management Process for Your Organization
  
  

Module 10 - Developing Your Own Action Plan for Improvement (30 mins.)

• Identify Needs and Goals
• Identify Which Questions Need to Be Answered to Meet Goals
• Identify Which Data Will be Needed to Answer Questions
  
  

Module 11 - Summary (10 mins.)

• Top 10 Workshop Points
• Questions and Answers

Deliverables

• Course notebook with slides, worksheets, checklists, complete examples and supporting text
• You will have the basic information needed to design and implement effective QA and QC processes