How do you ensure the quality and consistency of test charters across different testers and sessions?

1 What is a test charter?

A test charter is a brief document that outlines the purpose, scope, and focus of an exploratory testing session. It serves as a guide for the tester's actions and decisions, as well as a way to record and report their findings and issues. Generally, a test charter includes a mission statement summarizing the goal of the testing session and its value to stakeholders, a list of areas or features to test with specific aspects or scenarios to explore or verify, risks or assumptions to investigate or mitigate, potential problems or defects to look for, resources or tools such as test data, test environments, test scripts, or test heuristics to use, and deliverables or outputs like test notes, bug reports, test coverage, or test metrics to produce.

2 Why are test charters important?

Test charters are essential for ensuring quality and consistency of exploratory testing across different testers and sessions. They provide a shared understanding of what to test and how to test it, as well as enable testers to plan, prioritize, and communicate their testing activities and results. By having test charters, it can increase the efficiency and effectiveness of exploratory testing by reducing duplication and waste. Additionally, it can enhance the credibility and reliability of exploratory testing by providing traceability, accountability, and transparency. Moreover, test charters can foster collaboration and learning of exploratory testing by facilitating feedback, sharing, and improvement.

3 How do you create test charters?

Creating test charters is a collaborative and iterative process that involves testers and other stakeholders, such as product owners, developers, or customers. It requires an in-depth understanding of the system under test, the testing context, and the testing objectives. To create a test charter, review available information and documentation about the system under test, such as user stories, requirements, design specifications, or user feedback. Identify the testing scope and boundaries, including target features, functions, or user journeys to test and the test environments, platforms, or devices to use. Define the testing mission and value proposition by outlining the main goal of the testing session, expected outcomes, and benefits for stakeholders. Specify the testing focus and strategy by noting areas or aspects to explore or verify, risks or assumptions to investigate or mitigate, and methods or techniques to apply. Select the necessary testing resources and tools like test data, test scripts, test heuristics, or test automation to support the testing session. Lastly, write the test charter using clear language and a consistent format.

4 How do you review test charters?

Reviewing test charters is a critical step to ensure their quality and consistency, as it involves checking and validating the content, structure, and style of the test charters. This process helps to ensure that the test charters are aligned with the testing objectives and expectations, that they cover the relevant scope, focus, and risks, and that they are clear, concise, and complete. Additionally, it ensures that the test charters are consistent and coherent, with a unified format and terminology across different testers and sessions. This can be done by the testers themselves, their peers, or other stakeholders before, during, or after the testing session. To review test charters effectively, one should use a checklist or template to verify that all necessary elements are present; employ a rating or scoring system to evaluate quality and consistency; and use a feedback or review session to discuss the test charters with other testers or stakeholders.

5 How do you improve test charters?

Continuously improving test charters is a collaborative process that involves learning from the testing experience and outcomes, and applying the lessons learned to refine and enhance them. This can help increase the value and impact of exploratory testing by adapting to changing needs, as well as increase learning and innovation by discovering new insights. Additionally, it can increase collaboration and satisfaction by engaging testers and recognizing their contributions. Various methods can be used to improve test charters, such as using metrics to assess performance, test notes to capture observations, and feedback or retrospectives to reflect on the testing process.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?