31-10-2012, 12:23 PM
Establishing a Test Policy
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A testing policy (Figure 1) is a management’s definition of testing for a department. A testing policy involves the following four criteria:
1. Definition of Testing – A clear, brief, and unambiguous definition of testing.
2. Testing System – The method through which testing will be achieved and enforced.
3. Evaluation- How information services management will measure and evaluate Testing.
4. Standards – The standard against which testing will be measured.
Good testing does not just happen, it must be planned; and a testing policy should be the cornerstone of that plan. Figure 1 is a simplistic testing policy that an IT department could adopt. A good practice is for management to establish the testing policy for the IT department, then have all members of IT management sign that policy as their endorsement and intention to enforce that testing policy, and then prominently display that endorsed policy where it can be seen everyone in the IT department.
Methods
The establishment of a testing policy is an IT management responsibility. Three methods can be used to establish a Testing Policy:
1. Management Directive – One or more senior IT managers writes the policy. They determine what they want from testing, document that into a policy, and issue it to the department. This is an economical and effective method to write a testing policy; the potential disadvantage is that it is not an organizational policy, but rather the policy of IT management.
2. Information Services Consensus Policy – IT management convenes a group of more senior and respected individuals in the department to jointly develop a policy. While senior management must have the responsibility for accepting and issuing the policy, the development of the policy is representative of all the IT department, rather than just senior management. The advantage of this approach is that it involves the key members of IT department. Because of this participation, staff is encouraged to follow the policy. The disadvantage is that it is an IT policy not an organizational policy.
3. Users Meeting – Key members of user management meet in conjunction with the IT department to jointly develop a testing policy. Again, IT management has the final responsibility for the policy, but the actual policy is developed using people from major areas of the organization. The advantage of this approach is that it is a true organizational policy and involves all of those areas with an interest in testing. The disadvantage is that it takes time to follow this approach and a policy might be developed that the IT department is obligated to accept because it is a consensus policy and the not the type of policy that IT itself would have written.