"I’d like some advice around writing an end-to-end test plan on a product that isn’t remotely finished and where boundaries keep moving. We deliver in 2 weeks."
A friend of mine just asked me this question. It's a situation that I've been in a few times before. It can be quite stressful when you're in a situation like this. Particularly if you're new and still learning about the business, the people and the technology!
I like to break things down and let each step build upon the next!!
Clarify the situation
The answers to these questions will help you understand the mission:
What problem does our product/service solve?
How would you describe the people who are trying to solve that problem?
How does testing help?
Who is building the solution?
What skills do they have?
What strengths do they have?
What weaknesses do they have?
What's our biggest challenge from your perspective?
What are people most worried about regarding this product or service?
Explain how it will be dealt with
The answers to these questions will help you describe your strategy:
What principles will we use to guide us through the situation?
What's the biggest risk that threatens the success of the delivery?
What options do we have based on our context?
Of those options, which ones should we focus on exploiting the most?
And what makes that a good decision?
What information will testing reveal?
How do we intend to get that information?
What information will we ignore at first (or completely!)?
How do we intend to overcome our biggest obstacles?
Describe what actions will be taken
The answers to these questions will form your test plan:
Which parts of the product or service are the highest priority?
Which testing activities are the highest priority?
Which tools will we use to carry out the testing activities?
If you're in this situation, too, I hope this helps!