Bind teams for best product results

In my previous post, I discussed about the 3 M’s—Miscommunication, Misrepresentation and Misconception—factors that can play havoc with what a product looks like at the end of its development cycle. I had also said that it is improper collaboration between the business stakeholders, and the development and testing teams that could derail the product, and impact its overall quality.

In this post, I would be focusing on the steps that companies can take to avoid the pitfalls of the 3 M’s, ensuring complete coordination and cooperation between all the teams, hitherto working in silos. In simple words the solution is as simple as binding these different teams together, so that they think as one and work as one. By eliminating the barriers between the teams, aligning their different and distinctive working styles and unifying them in a single environment, it is possible to beat the bottlenecks.

The three challenges, need three solutions, or should I say, three simple steps.

Step 1 – identify the Tools and Frameworks that are used by the project teams on a recurring basis. There is also need to figure out the various Frameworks that are being used either to develop or test the applications.

Step 2 – Identify the Practices that are followed by the team at each phase of the development and testing process and further segregate the Tools and Practices based on their areas of usage.

Step 3 is to rightly blend the tools and practices that have been identified in step 1 and 2; and integrate the same, bring them together.

The three steps make it possible to understand how the practices are linking up with each other using various Tools and Frameworks. By rightly blending the Tools and Practices that have been identified in Steps 1 and 2, and bringing them together, companies can reduce various ambiguities that remain in the teams while performing testing.

It is also possible to develop a platform that integrates the tools and activities performed during development and testing. This platform can help in synchronizing the tasks, finally leading to productive testing. Furthermore, this platform can be made generic so that the teams do not need to change or replace the tools to enjoy its benefits.

Do let me know what in your view the solution to the 3M’s conundrum is, and how you have managed to overcome these challenges on your own turf.