How do you cope with regression testing in a remote and distributed team?

Regression Tests are performed on the functionalities that are not impacted by the changes directly but their stability will need to get tested to identify indirect impacts-so refining regression test scenarios are critical and not many organisations refine and review periodically when they have regression tests existing for a while as predefined and re-used all the time. Minimum 30% of the live incidents are possible when irregularities in regression tests identified. Not many user interface(UI) regression tests cover 'Accessibility Regression Tests' hence possible penalties and accessibility violations in user journeys-I have shared a free repository of tests if useful: https://github.com/narayananpalani/webAccessibilityTestCases

Regression testing could be highly exhaustive when there is a time crunch and you are focusing only on quality deliverables. In this case, a template created specifically for regression testing comes in handy. You can prepare a draft, get the team involved, do a brainstorming with your team and customize the template. Focus on what important columns should be there in the regression template. You can create in MS-Excel ( some companies uses excel, which is great utility in itself) whereas some companies prefer using test management tools. Regression test template will help you and save time during your testing process.

Every organization has it's own unique context within which regression testing is performed. For example, medical device companies are held to a more specific testing and documentation standard than a clothing company's software or IT department. By using a template for regression tests, the lead or strategist can define the level of testing and documentation required for the specific context within which the tests are being conducted. Making documentation as lightweight as possible within a particular context is an important part of the cost/benefit equation.

If you are wondering on how do we create a regression test template. Please do the analysis first, do brainstorming session with your team. Be open for feedback & customize the template so that it can fulfill the requirements. Some of the columns that can go into a regression test template are: Area of functionality Testcase Expected outcome Status Tested before ( Y/N) Tested on date Comments/Remarks Etc. Depending upon the team feedback and stakeholders feedback, you can add/edit/remove the columns from the regression test template.

In some contexts, these detailed reports/templates might add value, but not generally. This level of detail for regression testing will add a great deal of expense. Additionally, there is overhead and cost involved with maintaining and making meaningful use out of the data collected. For starters, the first question that needs to be asked is, "who will be the consumer of the regression testing data?". Adding value to this consumer must be the first goal of any documentation, and should be a litmus test for the level of documentation required.

Standard regression tests get connected all the way to User Stories, Epics in Agile, similarly Requirement Document ID in Waterfall. Fields such as priority, severity, version number, feature, user type, test data, test environment, description, test steps, re-usable test steps/data are common fundamentals while writing regression tests manually but there are different needs in test automation: CI/CD based regression that runs with valid data to check impact and report failure during regression tests. Advanced teams integrated AI to track failure to identify historical failure rate and reopen the defects which are previously linked and closed after initial fixes! Refer: https://github.com/narayananpalani/cypress-test-techniques

Handling regression testing in a remote team requires an efficient report template. At White Internet Consulting, we prefer using test management software due to its ease of use and ability to share updates in real-time. When creating a template, start by defining its purpose and consider the needs of its audience. Key sections should include the testing plan, strategy, and results. Populate the template with sample data and seek team feedback to ensure its functionality and clarity. This approach not only streamlines the regression testing process but also enhances collaboration across distributed teams, ensuring all members stay aligned and informed.

Gone are the days when teams used word or excel sheet for regression templates. With the advent of agile, teams have learnt to be more streamlined by removing silos and grits that is not required. Along comes the modern software management tools like Azure DevOps with features (Azure Test Plan, WorkItems, Dashboards, Queries) that combined together makes querying, reporting, and tracking much easier, quicker, and easy to manage and provides insights that is otherwise difficult to get with traditional approach

AI has significantly advanced the field of regression testing by providing tools that can automate test case generation, execution, and maintenance. Some of the leading AI-driven regression testing tools include: Katalon Studio: Offers features like self-healing mechanisms for test cases, AI-powered test generation based on user behavior, and integration with various environments. TestComplete: Known for enabling the creation of automated functional tests for desktop, web, and mobile applications and supporting parallel test execution. TestCraft: A Selenium-based tool that allows both manual and automated testing and excels at delivering tests for web-based software quickly. And etc.,

Majority of the organisations use JIRA Xray or ALM Test Cases as templates for their Regression Test Cases-it helps in better utilization of their standard across organisation