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ISTQB® releases Certified Tester Advanced Level Agile Test Leadership at Scale – 3rd Increment – v0.6 (CTAL-ATLaS)

ISTQB® has released the 3rd increment of the Advanced Level (CTAL) Agile Test Leadership at Scale (ATLaS) version 0.6. This is the third of the five increments planned in the CTAL-ATLaS certification. CTAL-ATLaS is an “Agile” module within the ISTQB® Certified Tester Scheme and an in-demand next step after the ISTQB® Certified Tester Foundation Level (CTFL) and ISTQB® Certified Tester Foundation Level Agile Tester (CTFL-AT).

The release consists of the first (Quality Assistance), second (Improve Quality and Flow in a Value-Driven Organization) and third (Continuous Improvement of Quality and Testing) chapters of the ISTQB® Advanced Level Agile Test Leadership at Scale syllabus (v0.6), body of knowledge (v0.6) and sample exam questions and answers (v0.6).

Because of the incremental model the “Release Notes” will not be available until the very end of development of the complete ATLaS product.

This is the first time that ISTQB® has developed and released a certification incrementally. According to Agile principles, iterations ensure better quality through early feedback and continuous improvement.

When will the complete CTAL-ATLaS certification be ready?

We are planning to have it available by Q4 2022 (current estimation).

More information can be found in the CTAL-ATLaS FAQ section.

Product Owner of the CTAL-ATLaS Mette Bruhn-Pedersen said:

“With the modern demand for business agility there is an even greater need for accelerated quality. This is not achievable if all responsibility for quality remains in individual teams or specific roles such as testers. Therefore, test management becomes quality management and organizations need to adopt lean principles across the organization as well as within delivery teams. This changes the role of quality assurance and test professionals to be closer to agile test leadership and to fostering a quality culture and mindset.

The ISTQB® is offering a new certification at Advanced level to complement the existing Test Manager certification and help people build the competencies needed to effectively contribute to such demanding business environments. The certification is called Agile Test Leadership at Scale (ATLaS) and the third increment is now available for download on ISTQB®’s website

As in the previous two increments the focus in ATLaS is on the organizational level. In this third increment you will learn the why and how for the Continuous Improvement of Quality and Testing.

The certification introduces Structured Problem-Solving and certain associated techniques as an approach for supporting Testing and Quality activities across a value stream. It explores System Thinking and the analysis of Root Causes from a quality and testing perspective that improves the value stream as a whole and not just testing. It proposes using Causal Loop Diagrams as a key technique for identifying root causes in a complex environment, leading to the optimization of processes and procedures. This increment further covers conventional stages in causal loop diagramming and how to map the cause and effect of different variables in a system or process flow using basic visualization techniques.

Implementing these techniques in your organization brings value by:

• Efficiently addressing quality problems
• Implanting the mindset of continuous improvement within an enterprise
• Methodically tackling the root causes of system bottlenecks

By releasing the third increment the ISTQB® continues the agile approach to certification adopted in the first increment (see link to increment 1 news). We will continue to release each increment as it is developed so that member boards can disseminate this to their customers to gain interest; for training providers to start building courseware and so that exam providers can build exams. We also want to gain early feedback direct from our customers to help us tailor this certification to market demands.

This is a new way of releasing for the ISTQB®, using an iterative method building assets up until the final full launch when all materials, including exams will be ready. You will also see a new look syllabus format which focuses on the learnings you will gain, supported by a Body of Knowledge giving you rich examples and walking you through each learning objective in detail.

The Agile Test Leadership at Scale qualification is aimed at people who work in an organization which is pursuing agility at scale or business agility and already have a basic understanding of agile and agile testing. The ISTQB® Foundation Level certificate and Foundation Level Agile Tester certificate are prerequisites for taking the Advanced Level Agile Test Leadership at Scale certification exam.”

Thank you to all who have supported the update including Michael Pilaeten (Working Group Chair); Mette Bruhn-Pedersen (Product Owner); Jean-Luc Cossi, Richard Green, Michael Heller, Leanne Howard, Ebbe Munk, Francisca Cano Ortiz, Samuel Ouko, Tal Pe’er, Murian Song, Marcelo Chanez, Ilia Kulakov, Peter Jetter and Salinda Wickramasinghe (Authors) and Loyde Mitchell and many other from long reviewer list (incl. into syllabus), Exam & Marketing Work Groups.

(Source: ISTQB)

ISTQB® releases Certified Tester Advanced Level Agile Test Leadership at Scale – 3rd Increment – v0.6 (CTAL-ATLaS)

ISTQB® has released the 3rd increment of the Advanced Level (CTAL) Agile Test Leadership at Scale (ATLaS) version 0.6. This is the third of the six increments planned in the CTAL-ATLaS certification. CTAL-ATLaS is an “Agile” module within the ISTQB® Certified Tester Scheme and an in-demand next step after the ISTQB® Certified Tester Foundation Level (CTFL) and ISTQB® Certified Tester Foundation Level Agile Tester (CTFL-AT).

The release consists of the first (Quality Assistance), second (Improve Quality and Flow in a Value-Driven Organization) and third (Continuous Improvement of Quality and Testing) chapters of the ISTQB® Advanced Level Agile Test Leadership at Scale syllabus (v0.6), body of knowledge (v0.6) and sample exam questions and answers (v0.6).

Because of the incremental model the “Release Notes” will not be available until the very end of development of the complete ATLaS product.

This is the first time that ISTQB® has developed and released a certification incrementally. According to Agile principles, iterations ensure better quality through early feedback and continuous improvement.

When will the complete CTAL-ATLaS certification be ready?

We are planning to have it available by Q4 2022 (current estimation).

More information can be found in the CTAL-ATLaS FAQ section.

Product Owner of the CTAL-ATLaS Mette Bruhn-Pedersen said:

“With the modern demand for business agility there is an even greater need for accelerated quality. This is not achievable if all responsibility for quality remains in individual teams or specific roles such as testers. Therefore, test management becomes quality management and organizations need to adopt lean principles across the organization as well as within delivery teams. This changes the role of quality assurance and test professionals to be closer to agile test leadership and to fostering a quality culture and mindset.

The ISTQB® is offering a new certification at Advanced level to complement the existing Test Manager certification and help people build the competencies needed to effectively contribute to such demanding business environments. The certification is called Agile Test Leadership at Scale (ATLaS) and the third increment is now available for download on ISTQB®’s website

As in the previous two increments the focus in ATLaS is on the organizational level. In this third increment you will learn the why and how for the Continuous Improvement of Quality and Testing.

The certification introduces Structured Problem-Solving and certain associated techniques as an approach for supporting Testing and Quality activities across a value stream. It explores System Thinking and the analysis of Root Causes from a quality and testing perspective that improves the value stream as a whole and not just testing. It proposes using Causal Loop Diagrams as a key technique for identifying root causes in a complex environment, leading to the optimization of processes and procedures. This increment further covers conventional stages in causal loop diagramming and how to map the cause and effect of different variables in a system or process flow using basic visualization techniques.

Implementing these techniques in your organization brings value by:

• Efficiently addressing quality problems
• Implanting the mindset of continuous improvement within an enterprise
• Methodically tackling the root causes of system bottlenecks

By releasing the third increment the ISTQB® continues the agile approach to certification adopted in the first increment (see link to increment 1 news). We will continue to release each increment as it is developed so that member boards can disseminate this to their customers to gain interest; for training providers to start building courseware and so that exam providers can build exams. We also want to gain early feedback direct from our customers to help us tailor this certification to market demands.

This is a new way of releasing for the ISTQB®, using an iterative method building assets up until the final full launch when all materials, including exams will be ready. You will also see a new look syllabus format which focuses on the learnings you will gain, supported by a Body of Knowledge giving you rich examples and walking you through each learning objective in detail.

The Agile Test Leadership at Scale qualification is aimed at people who work in an organization which is pursuing agility at scale or business agility and already have a basic understanding of agile and agile testing. The ISTQB® Foundation Level certificate and Foundation Level Agile Tester certificate are prerequisites for taking the Advanced Level Agile Test Leadership at Scale certification exam.”

Thank you to all who have supported the update including Michael Pilaeten (Working Group Chair); Mette Bruhn-Pedersen (Product Owner); Jean-Luc Cossi, Richard Green, Michael Heller, Leanne Howard, Ebbe Munk, Francisca Cano Ortiz, Samuel Ouko, Tal Pe’er, Murian Song, Marcelo Chanez, Ilia Kulakov, Peter Jetter and Salinda Wickramasinghe (Authors) and Loyde Mitchell and many other from long reviewer list (incl. into syllabus), Exam & Marketing Work Groups.

(Source: ISTQB)

ISTQB® releases Certified Tester AI Testing v1.0 (CT-AI)

ISTQB® has released the Certified Tester AI Testing (CT-AI) version 1.0. This is the first CT-AI certification and is part of the specialist stream within the ISTQB® Certified Tester Scheme. It is an in-demand next step after the ISTQB® Certified Tester Foundation Level (CTFL).

The release consists of the ISTQB® Certified Tester AI Testing Syllabus (v1.0), Sample Exam Questions and Answers (v1.0), CT-AI Overview (v1.0) and Accreditation Guidelines (v1.0) each supported by ISTQB® Glossary keyword items and Business Outcomes with full Learning Objectives traceability. The combined Exam Structure and Rules has been updated to v1.1 and Exam Structure Table to v1.2.

An overview of the product as well as sunset and grandfathering are in the Release Notes on the ISTQB® website.

The content of the new syllabus addresses 7 business outcomes via 68 learning objectives.

What does this ISTQB® CT-AI release mean?

• The 1.0 syllabus for CT-AI will be the prevailing current version.
• The other AI relates syllabi from A4Q, AiU and CSTQB/KSTQB will be valid to October 12th 2022
• Accredited Training will remain as 3+ days (minimum 25,1 hours)
• Accredited courses require accreditation of training materials, as described in the ISTQB® Accreditation Process
• Holders of the A4Q, AiU and CSTQB/KSTQB previous versions continue to hold a valid certification.

ISTQB® President Olivier Denoo stated:

“AI has moved into high gear. From a simple writer's dream, from a filmmaker's fantasy, it has become a reality and invites itself today in many aspects of our daily life, whether we are aware of it or not. It sorts, advises, guides our decisions, entertains us or even corrects our mistakes sometimes.

It is also, more and more often, our ally to better test these ever more complex and ever more present software.

This new ISTQB® syllabus and the accompanying certification are designed to help you test AI better (because yes, of course, AI can be tested too) or to understand how to test better with AI. It is the result of a long collaboration with world-renowned experts from service companies and academia.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the members of this multidisciplinary task force who have worked hard to bring the best of AI to you.

Enjoy your reading!”

Chair of ISTQB® Marketing Working Group Sebastian Małyska, noted:

“AI, Machine Learning and/or Deep Learning is not a new concept. Over the years people were more or less enthusiastic about this technology. However a strong mathematical background and increasing power of our processors caused us to witness real productization of such technology which gives real benefits to its users. Those have many implications and, as an example, software needs to be designed and tested with new approaches. We are defining new quality characteristics. AI can be part SUT as well as an everyday tool used in testing activities. And many, many more. One of the manifestations of the wide interest in this topic was several syllabuses launched into the market in recent times. Three independent organizations developed three different syllabuses targeting the same area of knowledge. Thanks to ISTQB®, the certification standard for testing related to AI has been stabilized and unified allowing, in my opinion, for further development of the testing knowledge base on the widely understood AI systems. I personally see a greater advantage in such unification that allows tests to find one complementary source of information allowing us to make our testing even more advanced than before.”

Thank you to all who have supported this syllabus. Especially the task force team Klaudia Dussa-Zieger (chair), Werner Henschelchen, Vipul Kocher, Qin Liu, Stuart Reid, Kyle Siemens, and Adam Leon Smith. Also authors of the three contributing syllabi:

• A4Q: Rex Black, Bruno Legeard, Jeremias Rößler, Adam Leon Smith, Stephan Goericke, Werner Henschelchen
• AiU: Main authors Vipul Kocher, Saurabh Bansal, Srinivas Padmanabhuni and Sonika Bengani and co-authors Rik Marselis, José M. Diaz Delgado
• CSTQB/KSTQB: Qin Liu, Stuart Reid

The team thanks the Exam, Glossary and Marketing Working Groups for their support throughout the development of the syllabus.

(Source: ISTQB)