5 Key Activities of UAT

User Acceptance Testing (UAT) ensures that a product is made according to the customer requirements. The ultimate goal of a product is that it should work seamlessly in a real-time environment thereby offering the necessary services to be of worth in the marketplace. This testing method solidifies the testing process and makes the product robust and scalable. In this article, you will get to know the five activities of UAT.   

What is User Acceptance Testing?

In this testing method, end-users will take up the responsibility to test and evaluate the software application. The feedback provided by end-users will be analysed by the testing and development team to make any necessary changes and modifications for improving the quality of the software application.

Following are the 5 key activities of UAT:

1. Initiate with a well-defined plan: Conducting User Acceptance Testing (UAT) in a feasible and rewarding manner requires implementing a well-defined plan of action. Information pertaining to the UAT schedule needs to be collected. This information will eventually help in creating a plan.

Who are all the members involved in the user acceptance testing activity needs to be analysed and subsequently a list must be prepared. The assigned team members must clearly know their roles and responsibilities to carry out the testing process productively. Clear communication guidelines must be established to enhance the effectiveness of team members. 

2. A roadmap for proper execution: UAT test cases must be executed in a well-thought-out manner. In this testing method, end-users will be responsible to test and evaluate the application. In certain scenarios, your product is offered across various geographical regions for which remote end-users need to be taken into perspective to obtain their valuable feedback. In this scenario, video conference based meetings can be set up to discuss about the test cases and the product as a whole. Both quantitative and qualitative data can be obtained from the end-users.

Right after the development process is finished, test cases are executed, which will in turn help in gaining new insights that would have not known otherwise. 

3. Document testing activities for better tracking: User acceptance tests must be documented and executed at the same time, as it is considered to be a good practice. All relevant information relating to the test activities must be well documented without losing any data. Documenting users’ feedback and then preparing clearly defined responsibilities in order to work upon the feedback is necessitated.

Bugs and defects must also be thoroughly documented. Assign tasks and priorities by taking key inputs from the document and then delegating it to the concerned team members.   

4. Evaluate test cases: Evaluate to know whether the defined criteria are tested and met and also ensure whether the testers were able to accomplish those criteria. Test cases that have failed and the problems that took place need to be considered. These problems need to be solved by the testing and development team.

Analyse both qualitative and quantitative data that has been documented. Following are some of the questions that need to be pondered upon:

• Test cases were completed by how many testers?

• How would you rate these test cases?

• What was the psychological state of each tester?

• What was the emotional connect during the test cases?  

5. Build in-depth reports: The core strength of reporting lies in making better decisions. A well- depicted report will give the teams a keen sense of understanding regarding the performance and how the performance can be enhanced in terms of improved quality, better testing tactics and less time for performing testing activities.

Reporting gives an idea as to how future test cases and UAT workflows can be improved.

Conclusion: User acceptance testing can provide good results provided it is performed in a well-thought-out and strategic manner. If you are looking forward to performing user acceptance testing or are looking for market specific advice, then get connected with a premium company that is completely devoted to the domain of software testing services by providing valuable insights to their worthy customers.

About the author: I am a technical content writer focused on writing technology specific articles. I strive to provide well-researched information on the leading market savvy technologies.