A successful DevOps project is quite challenging. What do we need to operate the application, if we only worked in developing it up to now?  Testing activities keep the running system in mind: Maintainance, reliability, stability, usability e.g. as quality characteristics in IEEE 25010, a guideline during testing, as well as the basis for Ops. Janet Gregory and Lisa Crispins holistic DevOps loop is a great visualization.

The talk gives real world scenarios where adopting the holistic testing approach would have added the operational aspects right into the development from scratch as well as successful best practices driven by testing.

Target Audience: Agile Teams, Project managers, Developers, Testers, Decision makers
Prerequisites: experience in software development, Teamwork, Agility, Scrum
Level: Advanced

Extended Abstract:
In today's ever-evolving world of software development, the integration between development (Dev) and operations (Ops) is more crucial than ever. However, making this transition smooth and ensuring a consistent quality of service is not straightforward. This is where a robust and visionary testing approach can make all the difference.

There are significant challenges that arise when Devs and Ops must suddenly work as one cohesive unit. Real-world experiences will shed light on these challenges, where confusion around responsibilities and a lack of quality-focused processes could undermine the benefits of DevOps.

Testing can indeed play a major part in transforming this process, because testing is more than just ensuring code quality or finding bugs. This presentation will showcase how adopting a holistic approach can add operational perspectives right into the development cycle from the very beginning, emphasizing quality characteristics from standards like IEEE 25010. This includes maintainability, adoptability, reliability, and observability. These characteristics not only align perfectly with operational needs, but become essential for maintaining systems in production while adding new functionality.

An impressive approach will be Janet Gregory and Lisa Crispin's holistic DevOps loop--a visualization that integrates quality and feedback cycles throughout the entire software lifecycle. This loop supports to understand where testing should happen, why it matters, and how it affects not only the development process but also the operational success of an application. The talk will demonstrate how the holistic testing approach can address those previously shown challenges faced by real DevOps teams and how it could have made a significant difference in certain projects if it had been adopted from the beginning.

Through this extended perspective, attendees will see the benefits testers can add to the process of shifting from a linear or siloed development model to one that integrates deployment, release and operation of the product. Examples from real projects will illustrate how this approach successfully enabled teams to manage this process - not just by patching problems after they occur, but by preventing them as best as possible. By crafting strong team responsibilities from using this holistic testing approach, the results can elevate both the team's performance and the quality of the software they produce.

Ultimately, the goal is to inspire testers and their teams to see their role as drivers of overall project success, rather than being limited to old fashioned testing functionalities. Testers equipped with a visionary mindset and comprehensive knowledge can actively support transforming entire teams (development and operations), bringing a new level of professionalism and stability that directly translates into successful running every aspect of software products.