Testing in the Pub Podcast, Episode 15 - Pairing

Stephen Janaway and Dan Ashby's "Testing in the Pub" podcast is a nice source of free learning, and they deserve thanks for taking the time to put it together.

Having started early last year they're up to Episode 15 already with this one about pairing.

For years I worked as a sole Tester in an organisation where all the dev was outsourced. I used to dream of pairing (ok, not literally dream) if only to have a second set of eyes checking what I was doing.  Since then I've been fortunate to have the chance to do some informal pairing with other Testers and have really found it valuable.

In this podcast I found it particularly interesting to hear Janaway and Ashby talk about how pairing can mean more than just sharing a screen with another tester to tackle a challenging scenario; or with a developer to provide immediate feedback on what they're coding.

As Testers, pairing can also help us influence decision-making; raise our profile in the team; and enlighten those who don't fully understand the role of testing - or believe the misconceptions. We can add value to a project pairing with other roles than just test and dev. (I've had a valuable session pair-testing with a Project Manager in the past.)

Pairing is also a great way of learning. Dan Ashby talks about a nice set of simple question words he uses as a framework whilst pairing to gain information and understanding which will inform testing decisions.

As someone who finds Session Based Test Management a useful approach to Exploratory Testing, I'm embarrassed I hadn't already thought about applying a similar approach to pairing. 

Don't just spontaneously attempt to start a pairing session with a colleague. Get their agreement in advance, have a goal for the session and put a time-limit on it.

But before you do any of that, as the guys discuss, you might need to convince Management that pairing is a good use of resources.

Lots to think about and act on after listening to this discussion. And it can be easily digested during your commute!

You can access this episode, and all of the Testing in the Pub podcasts at: http://testinginthepub.co.uk/testinginthepub/