Organizing Tests

Organization cannot be forgotten in test management. What are the ways to do it?

Organization is a crucial aspect of test management, as it ensures a well-maintained structure, traceability and efficiency in testing process. Organization of tests is an individual choice of every team, as it has to match their process and prove itself useful in the long run.

With so many options regarding the test organization and with a versatile team, test management tools need to be flexible when it comes to the testing setup. In ATM, the configuration of the testing process is fully adjustable to the needs of each testing team. The add-on allows the users to stay true to their preferences and tailor their test management.

How to organize tests?

The methods are endless and while it is tough to list all of them, some of the most common ones can be mentioned. Each of them present benefits and disadvantages, and become extremely useful in right environments. The approaches described below are just examples.

Single-project

In this option, users organize their whole tests in one Jira project and create projects, e.g. per-product. In this single space, all of the testing objects are stored - from test plans to test executions.

Pros:

• Simple and intuitive structure created in one space

• Easy overview of all of the testing elements

• Full visibility within the product scope

• Useful on a smaller testing scale

Cons:

• Tough to maintain consistency across a variety of projects

• Higher risk of creating duplicates of the same cases

• Problematic while scaling the testing process

Hybrid model

In this approach, individual projects can be set up for requirements and defects, while the rest of the testing objects (test cases, test plans, test executions, etc.) are kept in a single one. Permissions can be granted to specific co-workers outside of the testing teams, that are usually involved in defining requirements or reviewing defects.

Pros:

• Simplified way to include members from outside testing teams (such as product owners or developers) and grant them access to selected objects

• Easier to maintain, reuse and report on the testing status with all of the testing objects in one space

• Test management in itself becomes easier (e.g.global test plans creation or maintaining a naming convention)

• Requirements can be linked to multiple test cases in multiple projects

Cons:

• Members of the testing team may need multiple permissions to browse multiple projects

• Defects placed in a separate project may make it harder to keep up with priorities

Cross-project

Here, users actually create projects per test object, which especially comes in handy on a bigger scale. Moreover, because test objects have individual projects, the users can limit the access to certain projects for specific roles in the team.

[Cross-project grafika]

Pros:

• Clearly defined responsibilities within the team, thanks to individual project permissions

• Testers avoid the risk of duplication and forgetting essential details

• Fosters creating comprehensive and reusable testing items

• Easier to track the changes made in testing items

Cons:

• Harder to see end-to-end coverage for a single product

• Requires more discipline when it comes to planning and maitaining