When Programmers and Testers Collaborate

Testers can help customers write and automate acceptance tests using the language of their domain with tools such as Fit (Framework for Integrated Test). When these tests are given to the programmers before they coding begins, the team is practicing Acceptance Test Driven Development (ATDD). The programmers write the fixtures to run the tests, and then code to make the tests pass. These tests then become part of the regression suite. When this collaboration occurs, the functional tests are completed early allowing time for exploratory testing on edge conditions or through workflows of the bigger picture.

Programmers can collaborate with testers to create successful automation as well. They understand good coding practices and can help testers set up a robust test automation suite that works for the whole team. I have often seen test automation projects fail because the tests are poorly designed. The tests try to test too much or the testers haven’t understood enough about the technology to be able to keep tests independent. The testers are often the bottleneck, so it makes sense for programmers to work with them on tasks like automation. Working with the testers to understand what can be tested early, perhaps by providing a simple tool, will give the programmers another cycle of feedback which will help them deliver better code in the long run.

By Janet Gregory