Introduction
Two years ago, I got an assignment for a project, after the greeting session on the onboarding day my test lead transferred me the business knowledge. She started by showing me the system architecture diagram, which looked like an abstract painting for me. It was highly complicated with not only multiple modules integrated into the system but also various functions as the system has been built for a long time (longer than my age). I started asking myself: How can I survive in this project? How can I create test cases with this chaos? To be honest, all I wanted to do at that time was take the resignation letter immediately. Within these difficulties, it’s not the end of the world, every problem has its own solution. Based on my experience, I would like to share some insights about these challenges and provide tips to overcome them.
Challenges in Acquiring Domain Knowledge
1. Complexity of the Knowledge
Domain Knowledge can be highly complex, with complicated processes and terms that may overwhelm new testers to the domain. This is even more chaotic for maintenance projects, where you have to learn a wealth of knowledge because the system has been in place for a long time.
2. Limited Resources
Access to a project environment for practicing what you have learned in theory could be limited as you haven’t had access to resources at the very first time joining a project yet (Account Access, project resources, etc.)
3. Insufficient Instruction
Your mentor in the project might be busy with their task so it could be hard to ask them for a step-by-step instruction.
4. Lack of Documentation
Regularly, the documentation for the system is either unavailable or outdated in the maintenance project, which makes it hard for testers to understand the system.
5. Short Transition Time
Testers usually face short transition time, making it challenging to allocate sufficient time for learning the domain knowledge before officially executing testing in a project.
Solutions
1. Plan Your Approach
Create a plan to attack: Recognize that the picture of domain knowledge is super big, and you won’t master it overnight. Instead of trying to understand the entire system at once, break down the domain knowledge into some pieces to understand each part gradually and allocate time for learning.
2. Looking for help
Seek guidance from all team members in the project (not only the test leader but also other members): A mentor can provide domain knowledge, answer questions, or offer instructions for better working methods. With all these benefits, it’s fine to look for help from a mentor within your own project. If the situation worsens, it’s also acceptable to ask for help outside of the project, within your company (in case you got the project manager’s approval). Furthermore, you can request some walkthroughs related to the domain knowledge from your mentor.
3. Ask Questions
Never hesitate to ask a question: There is a popular book named: “Stay Hungry Stay Foolish” published by Rashmi Bansal. From the testing perspective, I completely agree with the title. Some people are worried about asking a question in the very first place upon joining a project due to fear of judgment. However, trust me, there’s no need to worry. As long as you have researched the problem, feel free to ask your question and be mindful to take a note after that.
4. Play around the system
Take advantage of the existing system: Have you heard about the idiom: “Practice makes Perfect”? It’s absolutely true that if we want to master something then we need to practice more. In every maintenance project, the system has been built for a long time so it’s always available for you. Now that you know what you have to do? Just allocate your time to play around with it.
5. The documentation should be up-to-date
Regularly update the documentation: From my experience as a tester in the maintenance project, I have struggled with poor documentation (test cases or requirements were not up-to-date but re-use was needed). It wastes much time to work it out so whenever you find something inconsistent just raise it for an update. You can update the documentation yourself or keep other members of the team posted.
6. Explore real-world scenarios:
Use existing resources on the internet: With the evolution of the internet, a wealth of information is available for you. For any domain, there is a lot of documentation as well as the test scenario you should cover or the terms and explanation. You can also ask for help from AI tools such as ChatGPT or Bing to help you gain a brief look at the domain knowledge instead of Google searching yourself.
Conclusion
While acquiring domain knowledge in maintenance projects can be challenging, it is not unachievable. With the right strategies and a proactive approach, testers can effectively learn about the system and ensure enough knowledge to perform the task in the project. Remember, the goal is to ensure the delivery of a high-quality product, and domain knowledge is a key ingredient in reaching this goal.