CAST 2013

A selection of lessons learned in software testing in the Financial Service industry in South Africa is compared to the experiences of a conservationist. The conservationist undertakes the mammoth task of settling a herd of badly behaved, traumatised elephants onto a private game reserve.  The size and complexity of a test environment, the execution and reporting techniques used and the development of context driven and exploratory testing principles and philosophies are explored.  Cindy Carless uses the deeply moving and entertaining account of settling the elephants while allowing them to remain wild to support her philosophy.  She asserts that the real value of software testing is to provide meaningful information to decision makers.  This information is used to determine the readiness of the software to add value to the business it is being used to support and enhance.