5 testing challenges and how to overcome them with a Jira app

As a tester, you’re probably used to certain practices and ways of doing things. Some of them are a piece of cake and some others… not so much. Have you ever wondered if the things you struggle with could be less of a hassle than they are now? Spoiler alert: they could. This article is here to show you how. We're going to talk about five common challenges testers face and how you can tackle them with the help of a dedicated testing tool, QAlity Plus - Test Management for Jira as an example. Let’s dive in. 

Challenge no 1: Lacking the bird’s eye view of your application

When testing, you’re focusing on certain aspects of the software. Particular bugs, features.. But what about the big picture?  Without seeing it clearly, some decisions become harder to make. For example, determining which tests to run first. Lacking a bird’s eye view, you’re not sure which test cases have been tested, how many times they have been tested, and where the most bugs and failures happen. This makes it harder to draw proper conclusions. 

It also becomes much more complicated to prioritize because you simply lack enough information on what exactly should go first. You could feel like you’re exploring a maze blindfolded and hoping to find all the hidden corners. You might end up spending too much time on areas that aren't as important while neglecting those that are high-risk. You can't be sure if you've covered everything which leaves room for undiscovered and overlooked issues. 

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How a testing app can help

You definitely want to avoid your testing turning out incomplete. QAlity Plus’s Traceability report can help you with that. This report provides valuable insights into your application's status, including:

  • Identification of untested areas: the report shows which parts of your software haven't been tested yet.
  • Test case overview: you can track executed test cases and see how many times they've been tested, which ones have encountered issues, and which ones have the most bugs.

Analyzing this report helps you draw meaningful conclusions from your testing efforts. For instance, if you notice a particular feature with a high number of bugs, it's a clear sign that this part needs immediate attention. 

Challenge no 2: Managing a multitude of tests

Managing large quantities of tests, if not done properly, can quickly become chaotic and challenging. In the world of software testing, this challenge is all too familiar. When there’s a continually growing collection of tests to oversee, you quickly end up navigating a complex landscape. Not getting lost may not be that obvious and altering those multiple tests can take a significant amount of your time. 

How a testing app can help

There are ways to effectively and efficiently manage a multitude of tests without feeling overwhelmed. With the aid of a dedicated tool, you can:

  • Organize your tests with test cycles. They will make it easier to manage a larger number of test cases. 
  • Group multiple tests within a test cycle using Jira Query Language (JQL). With it, you can easily group tests by category or those that need to be done together.
  • When dealing with multiple tests, assign specific testers to test executions. It will clarify responsibilities for different parts of the testing process. 
  • Need to make changes to a bunch of tests? Bulk operations come to the rescue - you can edit, clone, or delete all your tests at once.
  • Take advantage of test case versioning to create, track, and manage different versions of a test case while preserving previous versions for reference. 

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Challenge no 3: Tests reusability 

Without proper organization, you might get stuck using outdated tests that don't adapt well to changes. Or end up repeating the same tests for similar functionalities or across different projects. 

How a testing app can help

First of all, with an app the whole process is faster and goes smoother. You are provided with a centralized repository where test cases can be stored, organized, and accessed easily. You have a sort of library of reusable test assets, so locating and reusing test cases becomes much more convenient. Moreover, you can clone test cases or entire test cycles and reuse them easily. It not only saves your time but helps you be consistent in your testing practices. 

Challenge no 4: Recording and documenting results

Conducting tests is just a part of the job. Then goes another step - documenting your findings. It’s crucial to do it properly, however, it can be time-consuming and error-prone. Plus, when there’s no actual standardization in place, you might fall into the trap of recording tests in various formats, making it difficult to analyze and compare results consistently. Without a proper system in place, tracking the relationship between test cases, test executions, and reported issues becomes challenging. 

Creating a report that documents your testing can be tough too. Gathering test data and turning it into meaningful reports for stakeholders can be a complex and laborious task if you’re left to do it on your own. 

How a testing app can help

In QAlity Plus, you can easily set the status of the execution for each test step, also with a bulk change that lets you modify the status of a few or all test steps at once. There’s an option to add a comment for both the entire test case execution as well as every single test step. 

If you identify a bug, you can link it directly to the specific test case that encountered the issue. This makes it easy to pinpoint which tests are affected by which bugs. Whenever test results require additional evidence, such as screenshots or other files, you can attach them directly to the test steps, making sure they won’t get lost or mixed. 

 When conducting test executions, you don’t need to sift through various files and windows to locate information about previous actions. The execution history is readily accessible, allowing you to quickly determine if certain defects have already been found and reported in the past. You can view all bugs that have been linked to failed steps in the previous executions as well as see when the bug was last linked with a failed step.

 Then, you can utilize Test Execution Report that provides a view of all test executions within your selected projects and date range. The report includes key details such as the executed test case, execution date, the user who performed the test, and the result of the test execution. You can narrow down the results by filtering the report by a particular user and execution status.  Whenever you want to share it with stakeholders, you can easily export your data to an .XLSX file and you will get a ready, customized report with just a few clicks. This not only saves you valuable time but also adds to the overall pleasantness and convenience of your testing. 

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Challenge no 5: Navigating between different tools

Switching back and forth between various tools and platforms can become a constant, unpleasant shuffle. When your data is scattered across different places, the task of finding and managing crucial information becomes unnecessarily complex. 

But the challenges don't end with testing; they affect other areas too. Using a patchwork of different tools complicates the onboarding process for new team members, as they must learn and adapt to multiple systems instead of one. Configuring permissions becomes more hassle too. Team transparency diminishes as information gets scattered across these different platforms. 

How a testing app can help

QAlity Plus makes your testing process more integrated and efficient. You can create tests directly within existing Jira issues and there’s no need to switch between tools. Whether it's creating new tests or linking them to existing issues, it's all done within Jira, synchronizing test creation with monitoring and managing your Jira issues.

Traceability is enhanced by allowing you to link bugs directly to tests. You can quickly identify which tests are affected by specific issues, all while staying within a single, cohesive tool.

Additionally, test steps are displayed directly within linked issues, so you can view and update test steps without leaving the context of the issue you're working on. 

And when it comes to employee onboarding and permissions management, having one tool streamlines the process. You only need to train new team members in a single tool and there are fewer permissions to manage. 

Summary

From managing multiple tests to reusing them and documenting the results, all that can be more or less of a challenge, especially if you’re navigating through different tools that aren’t necessarily test management dedicated tools. Using such, you can enhance your overall testing experience and speed up your work, making it more pleasant at the same time. 




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