Agile Test Services

Introduction

Traditional software development approaches have a poor track record when it comes to delivering working software that meets business requirements on time and within budget. The main reasons why projects fail include lack of end-user involvement, poor requirements definition, unrealistic schedules, lack of change management, lack of testing, and inflexible processes. An Agile development approach is frequently seen as a potential solution to these problems. Insight, in conjunction with our strategic partners, offers a comprehensive portfolio of support services for Agile adoption.

Our services portfolio addresses the entire Agile Adoption Curve.

Consider	Investigate	Trial/Pilot	Adopt
White Papers	Suitability Analysis	Trial/Pilot Support	Training
Seminars	Strategy Development	Coaching/Mentoring	Coaching/Mentoring
Workshops	Practitioner Training	Specialist Resourcing	Resourcing
		Supplementary Resourcing	Asssessment

Go to:

Considering Stage
Investigating Stage
Trial/Pilot Stage
Adoption Stage

Considering Stage

Many organisations are considering introducing Agile development approaches but amidst all the hype about its success are uncertain where to start. Insight has helped many organisations in the early stages of Agile transitioning and we work with you to understand where it may be a good fit for your business context and technology environment. Agile is neither a one-size-fits-all approach, nor a sure fire way of delivering successful projects.

We have a number of offerings that can assist you during this stage. These include:

Whitepapers - available for download from the resources page of our web-site www.insight-test.com which give you pragmatic insights into Agile adoption across a range of organisations, useful research papers and case studies and our perspective on Top 10 things to consider when introducing or transitioning to Agile.

Seminars - We can organise in-house seminars with our senior practitioners to outline experiences and case studies of Agile in practice. These are typically two hours in duration and are offered free of charge.

Workshops - for those organisations that want more in-depth discussion of Agile we organise either half or full-day on-site workshops with a team of your people. The audience usually comprises software development managers, project managers, business analysts, architects, developers and testers who wish to gain perspectives on what Agile means for their particular role. Prices for this service are available on request.

Investigating Stage

You may have moved beyond the considering stage and have built up a good understanding and awareness of Agile but are unsure whether it is suitable to roll-out across your organisation or for your projects. We provide specific supports to assist you during this stage. These include:

Suitability Analysis - this is a fixed-duration, fixed-price service offering with the scope agreed in advance with your team. Our senior practitioners will undertake an on-site review of your current development organisation and projects and assess your readiness for Agile implementation. This is typically a three-day, two-person engagement and you will be provided with a valuable assessment report with findings and recommendations to help you make a go/no go decision on Agile implementation.

Agile Strategy Definition - this is a fixed duration, fixed price service offering with a well-defined scope and deliverables. Insight will appoint up to 2 senior practitioners to work with you and your teams to develop an Agile Strategy and Plan. Using our consulting methodology, IMPACT, we assess your current development organisation and lifecycle approach. We consider factors such as your business environment, processes & procedures, tools/technology, organisation, capability and metrics. Using the outputs from this assessment, our team work with you to develop a pragmatic Agile Strategy and Plan to allow you to transition to the new approach over a time period appropriate to your needs and environment. The Agile Strategy & Plan will include detail on resource and skills requirements, training needs, identify a suitable pilot project, outline a pilot project plan for trialling Agile and indicate the processes that need to be defined to support your pilot Agile development project. The Insight practitioners will then agree a set of coaching objectives to ensure you transition successfully to Agile on a pilot project. They will also facilitate a post-implementation review on the pilot project.

Trial/Pilot Stage

During the Trial/Pilot stage, Insight practitioners provide a range of services to ensure you achieve successful outcomes from your pilot project.

Our services during this phase include:

Trial/Pilot Support - this is a fixed-duration, fixed-price service offering with the scope agreed in advance with your team. Insight senior practitioners work directly on-site or remotely with your team to provide advice and/or hands-on support at any stage during the trial. A number of service days will be pre-agreed upfront and you draw down on these at any stage during the trial phase. In addition, Insight can facilitate a Post-Implementation review of the outcome of the trial on the pilot project.

Coaching - Insight can appoint a senior practitioner to act as a coach to the pilot project team. They can provide hands-on advice/support to the team in areas such as Agile project management, Agile development or Agile testing.

Resourcing - Insight can provide specialist senior practitioners at various points during the Trial to supplement your own resources or to provide specialist expertise -this may include agile project managers, agile developers or agile test practitioners.

Adoption Stage

During the Adopting stage your organisation will have developed considerable experience and practice of Agile across one or more projects. Insight has a number of offerings that you may find useful at this stage. These include:

Training -Insight has a number of advanced training courses including Agile Testing and Testing for Java Developers. These are delivered by senior practitioners who have on-the-job experience of Agile and can discuss current (and best) industry practice.

Coaching - Insight can appoint a senior practitioner to act as a coach to your project team. They can provide hands-on advice/support to the team in areas such as Agile project management, Agile development or Agile testing.

Resourcing - At any time required, we can provide experienced professionals to supplement your own resources or to provide specialist expertise -this may include agile project managers, agile developers or agile test practitioners. The duration of the resource assignment is flexible to suit your needs.

Assessment - Insight offers a fixed duration, fixed price Agile review and assessment package. The scope is agreed with you in advance and the objective is typically to review your current Agile implementation and processes and make recommendations for improvements. We appoint two senior practitioners to undertake the assessment. Strengths and weaknesses of the process are clearly identified and analysed. Quick -win opportunities and longer-term strategic initiatives are highlighted and discussed. Where appropriate, follow-up actions are discussed and agreed.

Irrespective of where your organisation is at on the Agile Adoption Curve Insight can provide services relevant to your needs and ensures that, where it is appropriate from a business and technology environment perspective, you can transition to Agile smoothly and quickly and begin to derive the anticipated benefits. Contact us for a preliminary exploratory discussion; we would welcome the opportunity to discuss your specific requirements.

Related Information

1. Download our Agile Test Servcies Datasheet

Software quality and qualityqualityqualityqualityqualitytestingg services provider UK and Ireland Insight Test Services, with offices in the UK and Ireland, is one of Europe largest full-service suppliers of specialist software quality assurance and test services.