What is a Test Charter?

Anushree Chatterjee

“Testing is the process of evaluating a product by learning about it through exploration and experimentation.”

This quote hits upon the essence of testing, the very fact that unless you don’t explore a product, you will not learn about its pros and cons.

Think about it… You use different apps. If we think of e-commerce platforms, then you’d have a recommendation of your own. Why so? Because you’ve researched and experienced firsthand how the options fare and come to a conclusion based on your experience with each of them.

This same principle applies to software testing. You have various forms of testing to cater to different needs, but the one that manages to encompass aspects of all of these other forms is exploratory testing. But when was the last time you did or heard someone do exploratory testing? This is because exploratory testing has a reputation for being time-consuming and tricky, even for veterans. This does not bode well with business, especially since there’s great pressure to deliver products quickly, meaning less time to test.

So does this mean you should stop exploratory testing altogether? No. You just need a better way to do it. You can navigate the tumultuous seas of exploratory testing with a test charter at the helm.

Let’s learn more about test charters and how to use them.

What is a Test Charter?

A test charter is like a brief guide or plan for a specific testing session. It outlines what the tester aims to explore or test during that session, what areas or features they should focus on, and how long they have to test.

It’s especially useful in exploratory testing, where there aren’t strict step-by-step instructions (like in traditional test cases). Thus, it’s a tool that helps testers stay on track while giving them the freedom to be creative and flexible during testing.

How to Create a Test Charter?

Creating a test charter is pretty simple. It’s about planning and guiding your testing session so you know what you’re testing, how you’re testing it, and what you’re expecting to happen. Here’s how you can create a test charter.

Main Components of a Test Charter

There are some basic components that are part of a test charter.

• Objective: This is the main goal or purpose of the testing session. It defines what you need to accomplish during the session. Having an objective helps stay focused on what they need to be tested. Without a clear objective, testing can become too broad or unfocused.
• Scope: The scope outlines the areas of the system or application that will be tested and, just as importantly, what won’t be tested. It makes sure that you don’t waste time testing features outside the current focus. In fact, having a well-defined scope will help contain testing activities and avoid unwanted overlaps with other testers.
• Resources: Resources here are the tools, environments, and people needed to complete the testing session. This information helps the team know what’s required to support the testing session.
• Time Constraints: Time constraints help stay on track and avoid spending too much time on any single area. It keeps the testing session focused and efficient so that timely deliveries can happen.
• Test Approach: This outlines the method or strategy the tester will use during the testing session. It could include specific techniques, such as testing a feature for usability, or it could be focused on error handling, performance, etc. You can always adjust the approach if unexpected issues arise.
• Expected Outcomes: This section describes the desired results or behaviors the tester expects to see based on the testing objective. By defining the expected outcomes, testers can compare the actual behavior with what was anticipated. If the outcomes don’t match, it’s an indication that there may be a bug or unexpected behavior that needs to be investigated further.

Test Charter Template

Test Charter: Login Functionality

Challenges with Creating Test Charters

The idea of a test charter is great – it guides the tester through an unorganized process like exploratory testing. However, it can be tricky to come up with a good test charter that helps the tester rather than confuses them.

• Too Broad or Vague Objectives: If the objective in the test charter isn’t clear or specific enough, the tester might not know exactly what to focus on. This can lead to wasted time or missed testing areas.
• Lack of Detailed Guidance: Test charters give flexibility, but if they’re not detailed enough, testers might struggle with knowing how to test the feature effectively.
• Time Constraints Can Be Too Tight: Setting a time limit is important, but sometimes the time allotted may not be enough to thoroughly test everything. This could lead to incomplete testing.
• Difficulty in Balancing Flexibility and Structure: Test charters are meant to provide flexibility. But finding the right balance between structure and freedom can be tricky. Too much flexibility can lead to random testing, and too much structure can limit creativity.
• Too Much Focus on One Aspect: Sometimes, test charters focus too much on one aspect of the test and ignore others. This can lead to incomplete test coverage.
• Miscommunication or Lack of Collaboration: If a test charter isn’t well-communicated to the team or if testers don’t collaborate properly, there can be misunderstandings about what is being tested and why.
• Not Easy to Adapt: Sometimes, a test charter can be hard to change if unexpected issues arise during testing, especially if it’s too rigid.

Conclusion

You can look at test charter as a way to bring order to the madness that exploratory testing tends to bring. By defining clear objectives, scope, resources, time constraints, approach, and expected outcomes, you can effectively explore an application while making sure you are aligned with the goals of the testing session. It helps maintain a balance between direction and flexibility, which is especially useful in exploratory testing where creativity and adaptability are key.

“We spent so much time on maintenance when using Selenium, and we spend nearly zero time with maintenance using testRigor.”

Keith Powe VP Of Engineering - IDT