How widely are the ISO 29119 standards and the TMMi Framework used in your day to day activities?

[jane_d_cruze]

Hi MoTaverse members,

Following a brief discussion in the chat of yesterday’s Testing Planet Episode 8 about the TMMi framework, I’m eager to hear your thoughts and insights.

Throughout my career, I’ve leveraged both the ISO 29119 Software Testing standard and the TMMi framework to shape and refine testing practices. I’ve found them invaluable in enhancing quality and efficiency.

I’m curious:

• How have you found working with these frameworks?
• Can they be applied flexibly to ensure compliance without stifling creativity?
• What are your key takeaways or challenges?

I’m also more than happy to offer guidance on either framework if you’re keen to dive deeper.

So, where do you find yourself in the ‘chaos’ of your QA, QE, or Testing journey?

I’d love to hear your thoughts on using frameworks and standards.

[ipstefan (Stefan Papusoi)]

I’ve been in 3 countries, with 7 companies(varying sizes, business domains) and haven’t seen yet standards or frameworks being applied.
Sure, some tried to build a custom testing methodology that fits their context. But don’t go as heavy into it as to restrict themselves to frameworks/standards.

I wonder where they are used and why?

[jane_d_cruze]

Thanks, Stefan.

Having worked extensively in the public sector, particularly in healthcare, I’ve seen firsthand how essential it is to meet standards and frameworks to ensure processes and practices align with government risk profiles.

Additionally, in my experience with a retail organization, the quality department lead emphasized the importance of diverse teams adhering to the same framework. As a result, both the ISO 29119 Software Testing standard and the TMMi framework have become integral parts of my testing structure.

When used as true frameworks to establish a testing and quality baseline for improvement, I’ve found them to be comprehensive and reliable starting points. While it’s crucial to tailor any framework to the specific context of an organization, I’ve never found these standards overly restrictive. Instead, they provide a solid foundation with all the key elements needed to define and improve testing processes effectively.

[larsthomsen]

One of my former bosses wrote ISO 29119, so of course I got a training It’s probably used in a context where standards are more important (healthcare, public services, safety etc) and occasionally I’ve heard it referred to in projects of this kind.

[danuk (Dan)]

Is there an accessible way of evaluating/learning this standard first-hand, assuming my company doesn’t own a copy of ISO 29119? The standard is approx 400 quid afaik.
I’m aware of the discussions about it so not interested in third party blog posts denigrating the standard.
Presumably the ISTQB material is written against the ISO standard (again, not interested in ISTQB discussions!)
Thanks in advance!

[jane_d_cruze]

Hi Dan,

You could try the following:

1. Visit ISO Online Browsing platform

2. Search for 29119

3. This will give you the schedules available:

29119-1 - General Concepts
29119-2 - Test Processes
29119-3 - Test Documentation
29119-4 - Test Techniques
29119-5 - Keyword Driven Concepts
29119-6 - Agile practices
29119-11 - AI based systems
29119-13 - Testing of biometric systems

4. View one of the schedules. The online browser will only show you the high level headings and summary information at the beginning of the schedule.

5. Using those high level headings in an AI tool such as ChatGPT or CoPilot ask it to summarise that schedule’s key points for the heading you are interested in.

It won’t give you the same level of detail that the ISO does, but it will give you search information you can dig into further.

Here’s an example below where I asked CoPilot to summarise the Agile Practices and Artifacts of ISO 29119 Schedule 6:

ISO/IEC TR 29119-6:2021 provides guidelines for applying ISO/IEC/IEEE 29119 standards in agile projects. Here are some key agile practices and artifacts mentioned in Schedule 6:

Agile Practices:

1. Iterative Development: Short development cycles with frequent reassessment and adaptation.

2. Continuous Integration: Regular integration of code into a shared repository to detect integration issues early.

3. Test-Driven Development (TDD): Writing tests before writing the code to ensure functionality from the start.

4. Pair Programming: Two developers working together at one workstation to improve code quality and share knowledge.

5. Daily Stand-ups: Short daily meetings to synchronize activities and create a plan for the next 24 hours.

6. Sprint Planning: Planning the work to be done in a sprint, typically lasting 2-4 weeks.

7. Sprint Review: Reviewing the work completed during the sprint to gather feedback and adjust plans.

8. Sprint Retrospective: Reflecting on the sprint to identify areas for improvement.

Agile Artifacts:

1. Product Backlog: An ordered list of everything that might be needed in the product.

2. Sprint Backlog: The list of tasks to be completed during the sprint.

3. User Stories: Simple descriptions of a feature from the perspective of the user.

4. Definition of Done: A clear and concise list of criteria that must be met for a task to be considered complete.

5. Burndown Chart: A graphical representation of the remaining work in a sprint.

6. Velocity Chart: A measure of the amount of work a team completes during a sprint.

7. Test Cases: Specific conditions under which a tester will determine whether a system under test satisfies requirements or works correctly.

8. Defect Reports: Documentation of any bugs or issues found during testing.

These practices and artifacts help ensure that agile projects maintain high quality and adaptability throughout the development process.

[isabel-evans]

Stuart Reid has written a guide to the standard with a worked example: ISO/IEC/IEEE 29119 SOFTWARE TESTING STANDARDS - A Practitioner's Guide / Second Edition eBook : Reid, Stuart: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store It is about £10 I think on Amazon.

[isabel-evans]

Stuart asked me to write the preface, which I did. So I read a pre-publication version. I like it as an easy to access way to get the essence of what the standard says, and how to interpret it in a worked example that runs right through from strategy to test design techniques.

[jane_d_cruze]

Hi Isabel,

Nice, always good to have your name in a published book.

Yes I took a look at it yesterday, and you are right, it gives a great high level view of how the standard can be applied.

I was able to get a full copy of the standard (up to schedule 5) for my use at a previous employer, but it isn’t a cheap option for most people and I think that has held it back from being adopted by smaller organisations and certainly from being purchased by individuals.

[isabel-evans]

The book is a good option for toe dipping.