Why QA team shouldn't re-open the User Story?

[Poorna Pragna]

Just wanted to know Why QA team shouldn't re-open User Story?

What wrong in this process? Both i.e. bug/user story is meant for tracking point of view ! So QA will re-open it.

Thanks,

Poorna.

[Scott Theus]

Hi @Poorna Pragna,

When using a Scrum or Agile methodology where development happens in Sprints, QA should be a part of the sprint and the user story isn't marked "Done" until it is passed. In a true Scrum environment, there should be no bugs when the sprint is closed and the team moves on to the next one. 

However, everyone manages a project methodology a bit differently, so it is not uncommon for stories to be "Done" and the sprint closed after the issues have all passed unit testing and a limited QA process for the issue in that sprint.  Prior to a Release where the product goes into production, there is usually a UAT with regression testing that happens as part of the very last sprint. 

Bugs found in the UAT should be recorded in Jira as "Bug" or "Defect" issue types; the bug can be linked to the original story, but it is fundamental different than the story. When done this way the user story remains closed, and the bug is estimated and tracked separately.  This gives the project manager insight into how much work is going into bugs, how many bugs are being found, and helps them plan future releases accordingly to mitigate quality risks.

-Scott

[Poorna Pragna]

@Scott Theus, Thanks for the reply!  Ok, but my concern is WHY User Story cannot be reopened ? Points which you had mentioned is not answering WHY it shouldn't be re-opened ! Any specific answer please.

Thanks,

Poorna.

[Scott Theus]

@Poorna Pragna If you'll indulge me and read this post from a while ago, I'll continue the "house" example. It might help

Let's say that Sprint 2 "Frame the House" has 6 stories: Frame the Kitchen, Frame the Living Room, Frame the Bathroom, Frame the Basement, and Frame the Bedroom.

During the final inspection (UAT) you discover that one of the kitchen walls isn't level so the ceiling is higher on one side than the other. You let the contractor know, and they come in, tear down one wall, then rebuild it...drywall, electricity, paint, the whole thing. 

Is this reopening the story "Frame the Kitchen" or is it new work to fix the mistake?

Under the Scrum or Agile methodology, the "Frame the Kitchen" story is done; the contractor has moved on to other things. If they were to reopen the story it would mean tearing the mistake down, fixing it, then reopening the subsequent stories to run the electricity,  hang the drywall,  paint, decorate, etc. (Which, BTW..in a real life situation increases the work effort for that user story during that sprint, which will overstate the team's velocity.)

However, if it is counted as new work to fix the mistake the estimated cost of the work includes the frame, electricity, dry wall, paint, and, once the punch list of "bugs" is finished in an added  "bug fix" sprint, the final inspection is redone. 

Does that help? 

-Scott

[Scott Theus]

Hi @Poorna Pragna!

Just checking in to see if this was helpful...if so could you click the "Accept Answer" button to help others find it?

[Shirin Kannoujiya]

I believe in reopening a story because then we can do the regression tests.if we just track it as bug , then we may miss the regression areas. we just fix the bug and test it but fail to see with the fix of bug , affecting any working area.