Roles and Responsibilities in Reviews - ISTQB CTFL Guide

Roles and Responsibilities in Reviews - Complete Guide

Why is This Important?

Understanding roles and responsibilities in reviews is crucial because:

• Ensures Effective Reviews: Clear roles prevent confusion, overlap, and gaps in review activities, making reviews more efficient and productive.
• Improves Quality: When each participant knows their responsibilities, reviews catch more defects and issues early in the development lifecycle.
• Professional Standards: The ISTQB emphasizes that proper review management is a foundational testing practice that organizations must follow.
• Communication: Defined roles facilitate better communication and collaboration between team members.
• Accountability: Clear responsibilities ensure that someone is accountable for each aspect of the review process.
• Exam Success: This topic is frequently tested in CTFL exams, and understanding it deeply will help you answer related questions correctly.

What Are Roles and Responsibilities in Reviews?

Roles and responsibilities in reviews refer to the different participants involved in a formal review process and their specific duties and accountabilities. A formal review is a structured, well-documented process involving multiple stakeholders who examine work products (such as requirements, design documents, test plans, or code) to identify defects and improvements before they propagate further in the development lifecycle.

Key Roles in a Formal Review

1. Manager

• Decides whether to conduct a review and allocates resources.
• Ensures reviews are scheduled and conducted properly.
• Monitors that review metrics are met and actions are completed.
• Does NOT directly participate in the review discussion in many formal review types.
• Responsible for follow-up and ensuring defects are corrected.

2. Author

• The person who created the work product being reviewed.
• Provides context and explanations about the document.
• Can answer questions from reviewers about the work product.
• Responsible for implementing agreed-upon corrections and improvements.
• May attend the review meeting (though not always in all review types).

3. Moderator (or Facilitator)

• Leads and manages the review process and meeting.
• Ensures the review is conducted according to defined procedures.
• Manages time and keeps discussions focused.
• Ensures all participants follow the review process.
• Does not participate in finding defects; remains neutral and objective.
• Responsible for documenting and reporting review results.
• Escalates issues if the review team cannot resolve them.

4. Scribe (or Recorder)

• Records all defects, issues, questions, and decisions during the review.
• Documents the review findings accurately and completely.
• Ensures that nothing important is missed or forgotten.
• May also track action items and who is responsible for them.
• Produces the review report or minutes.

5. Reviewer (or Inspector)

• Examines the work product to identify defects, improvements, and issues.
• Brings expertise from different perspectives (e.g., test perspective, design perspective, user perspective).
• Discusses findings with other reviewers and the author.
• May have specific expertise areas (e.g., security reviewer, performance reviewer).
• Participates actively in review meetings and provides constructive feedback.

Important Notes About Roles

• Multiple Roles: One person can hold multiple roles in some cases (e.g., a reviewer can also be the scribe), but the moderator should remain independent.
• Variation by Type: Different types of reviews (e.g., informal reviews, walkthrough, technical review, inspection) may have different role requirements and emphasis.
• Team Composition: The size and composition of the review team depends on the work product, organizational context, and review type.

How Do Reviews Work?

Understanding the typical flow helps clarify where roles are most important:

1. Planning Phase

• Manager: Decides to conduct a review and allocates resources.
• Moderator: Prepares review plan, sends invitations, determines scope.
• Author: Provides the work product and supporting materials.

2. Preparation Phase

• Reviewers: Examine the work product independently and prepare comments.
• Author: May provide background information to reviewers.

3. Review Meeting

• Moderator: Leads the meeting, manages discussion flow.
• Author: Explains the work product and addresses questions.
• Reviewers: Present findings and discuss defects.
• Scribe: Documents all findings and decisions.

4. Rework Phase

• Author: Corrects identified defects.
• Manager: Monitors progress.

5. Follow-up Phase

• Moderator: Verifies that corrections were made properly.
• Manager: Ensures closure and metric collection.

Characteristics of Each Role in Detail

Manager Characteristics: Decision-maker, resource allocator, process owner, accountable for organizational adherence to review standards.

Author Characteristics: Creator of the work product, domain expert on their content, may be defensive about their work, responsible for implementing improvements.

Moderator Characteristics: Neutral facilitator, process expert, does not contribute defect findings, ensures fairness and structure, diplomatically manages conflicts.

Scribe Characteristics: Detail-oriented, accurate recorder, organized, able to capture information quickly and accurately, neutral observer.

Reviewer Characteristics: Analytical, detail-focused, knowledgeable about the domain or testing perspective, objective in feedback, collaborative problem-solver.

Exam Tips: Answering Questions on Roles and Responsibilities in Reviews

Tip 1: Know the Primary Distinction Between Roles

• Remember that the Moderator does NOT find defects; they manage the process.
• The Reviewers find defects; the moderator ensures they do it properly.
• This is one of the most commonly tested distinctions.

Tip 2: Manager ≠ Moderator

• A common exam trap: confusing the manager (who allocates resources and makes decisions) with the moderator (who facilitates the review).
• Managers are usually not present in the review meeting itself.
• If you see a question asking who manages the review process, the answer is the Moderator, not the manager.

Tip 3: Identify Who Does What

• Planning/Scheduling: Manager
• Finding Defects: Reviewers
• Facilitating Discussion: Moderator
• Recording Findings: Scribe
• Fixing Defects: Author
• Verifying Fixes: Moderator (in follow-up)

Tip 4: Understand Responsibilities vs. Accountability

• Different roles have different responsibilities and accountability levels.
• The author is accountable for fixing defects, but all reviewers are responsible for finding them.
• Read questions carefully to determine what they're asking: who is responsible, who is accountable, or who should do X?

Tip 5: Consider the Review Type

• Different review types (informal, walkthrough, technical review, inspection) may emphasize different roles.
• For example, in an inspection, roles are very formally defined and all roles are mandatory.
• In an informal review, roles may be less formal.
• The question may hint at the review type; use that to inform your answer.

Tip 6: Author Attendance

• In some review types (e.g., inspection), the author may not be present during defect discussion to avoid defensive reactions.
• In others (e.g., walkthrough), the author leads the review.
• Know which is which if the exam asks about author participation.

Tip 7: Independence of the Moderator

• The moderator should be independent of the author and the product being reviewed.
• This ensures objectivity and neutrality in managing the review.
• If a question asks who should be independent, the answer is likely the moderator.

Tip 8: Scribe vs. Moderator

• Don't confuse these roles. The scribe records; the moderator facilitates.
• In small reviews, one person might hold both roles, but their functions are distinct.

Tip 9: Recognize Key Phrases

• "Responsible for identifying defects" → Reviewers
• "Accountable for organizing the review" → Manager or Moderator (context-dependent)
• "Does not find defects but ensures the process is followed" → Moderator
• "Allocates time and resources" → Manager
• "Documents findings" → Scribe
• "Makes final corrections" → Author

Tip 10: Practice Scenario-Based Questions

• If a question describes a situation (e.g., "During a review, someone is not participating in finding defects but is instead taking notes"), identify which role that describes.
• In this example: that's the Scribe (recording) and possibly the Moderator (not finding defects).
• Practice linking scenarios to roles.

Tip 11: Follow-Up and Verification

• Questions about verifying that defects were actually fixed often involve the Moderator (follow-up verification) or the Manager (ensuring closure).
• The author implements the fixes; the moderator verifies them.

Tip 12: Multiple-Choice Strategy

• If unsure, eliminate answers that confuse roles (e.g., "The manager facilitates the review" is likely wrong; managers don't typically facilitate).
• Look for answers that clearly separate the responsibilities.
• If a role is not mentioned in an answer, it may be a clue that it's not the correct role.

Common Exam Question Patterns

Pattern 1: "Who is responsible for X?"

Example: "Who is responsible for identifying defects during a review?"
Answer: Reviewers

Pattern 2: "Which role is independent?"

Example: "Which role should be independent of the author and the product?"
Answer: Moderator

Pattern 3: "What is X role's primary responsibility?"

Example: "What is the moderator's primary responsibility?"
Answer: Facilitating and managing the review process (not finding defects)

Pattern 4: "Which role is accountable for X?"

Example: "Who is accountable for implementing defect corrections?"
Answer: Author

Pattern 5: Scenario-based questions

Example: "A team member is recording all the defects found during the review. Which role are they performing?"
Answer: Scribe

Key Takeaways for Success

• Each role has a distinct and specific purpose in the review process.
• The Moderator is the key facilitator who does not find defects.
• The Reviewers are the ones who actually find defects.
• The Author is responsible for fixing defects.
• The Manager allocates resources and ensures process adherence.
• The Scribe documents everything accurately.
• Understand the distinction between planning/management, facilitation, and defect identification.
• Be ready to link roles to specific activities and responsibilities.
• Practice distinguishing between similar-sounding roles (e.g., manager vs. moderator, scribe vs. moderator).

By mastering these roles and their responsibilities, you'll be well-prepared to answer any exam question on this topic with confidence.