MT - 11 - Test Strategy and Test-Plan

These are two different things but  often people mistake in differentiating between these two. Let see the details :

-> A Test Strategy document is a high level document and normally developed by project manager.The Test Plan document is usually prepared by the Test Lead or Test Manager.

-> The Test Strategy is normally derived from the Business Requirement Specification document.The Test Plan document on the other hand, is derived from the Product Description, 

->The Test Strategy document is a static document meaning that it is not updated too often. Test plan is also static but it may be updated oftenly.

Note : Some companies include the “Test Approach” or “Strategy” inside the Test Plan, which is fine and it is usually the case for small projects. However, for larger projects, there is one Test Strategy document and different number of Test Plans for each phase or level of testing.

COMPONENTS OF THE TEST STRATEGY DOCUMENT

• Scope and Objectives
• Business issues
• Roles and responsibilities
• Communication and status reporting
• Test deliverables
• Industry standards to follow
• Test automation and tools
• Testing measurements and metrices
• Risks and mitigation
• Defect reporting and tracking
• Change and configuration management
• Training plan

COMPONENTS OF THE TEST PLAN DOCUMENT

• Test Plan id
• Introduction
• Test items
• Features to be tested
• Features not to be tested
• Test techniques
• Testing tasks
• Suspension criteria
• Features pass or fail criteria
• Test environment (Entry criteria, Exit criteria)
• Test deliverables
• Staff and training needs
• Responsibilities
• Schedule