π Introduction
In the Software Testing Life Cycle (STLC), finding and fixing bugs (defects) is one of the most important tasks. But not every defect can be fixed immediately. Some are critical, while others may be minor. To manage this effectively, teams conduct a Defect Triage Meeting.
A Defect Triage Meeting helps the software testing team, developers, and project stakeholders decide which defects need to be fixed first, who will fix them, and when. In this article, weβll explain what a Defect Triage Meeting is, why it matters, and how it works with real-world examples.
π What is a Defect Triage Meeting?
A Defect Triage Meeting is a discussion where the team reviews all reported defects and prioritizes them based on severity, impact, and business needs.
π In simple words: Itβs like a doctor in an emergency room deciding which patients need urgent attention first. Similarly, the triage meeting decides which bugs should be fixed right away and which can wait.
π₯ Who Attends a Defect Triage Meeting?
The meeting usually involves different stakeholders, including:
Testers / QA team π§ͺ β Report defects and explain how they affect the software.
Developers π¨βπ» β Provide insights on the complexity of fixing defects.
Project Managers π β Ensure decisions align with deadlines and business goals.
Product Owners / Business Analysts πΌ β Prioritize based on customer or business impact.
π Key Objectives of a Defect Triage Meeting
Review Defects π β Go through all newly reported defects.
Assign Severity and Priority βοΈ β Decide how critical each defect is.
Allocate Ownership π€ β Assign defects to developers or teams.
Set Deadlines β³ β Agree on when defects should be fixed.
Communicate Status π’ β Update the team and stakeholders on progress.
π·οΈ Severity vs Priority in Defect Triage
Severity: How badly the defect affects the system.
π Example: If a payment gateway crashes, severity is High.
Priority: How urgently the defect should be fixed.
π Example: A typo in the About Us page has Low severity but Low priority too.
β
In triage meetings, severity and priority are discussed together to decide the order of fixing defects.
βοΈ How is a Defect Triage Meeting Conducted?
Collect Defect Reports ποΈ β Gather all defects from the bug tracking tool (like JIRA, Bugzilla, or Azure DevOps).
Review Each Defect π β Discuss impact, reproduction steps, and environment.
Classify Defects π·οΈ β Assign severity and priority.
Assign Owners π¨βπ» β Developers are assigned to fix the issues.
Decide Timeline β° β Agree on deadlines based on release schedules.
Update Tracking Tool π β Document decisions for transparency.
π§Ύ Example of a Defect Triage Meeting
π Suppose an online shopping website is being tested. The following bugs are reported:
Payment not processing with credit card β High severity, High priority.
Broken link in Help page β Low severity, Low priority.
Cart not updating item count β Medium severity, High priority.
During the triage meeting, the team decides:
Fix payment issue first π¨.
Cart issue is second priority.
Help page link can wait until the next release.
π Benefits of Defect Triage Meetings
Better Prioritization π― β Focus on critical issues first.
Improved Collaboration π€ β Brings QA, developers, and business teams together.
Efficient Resource Use β‘ β Avoids wasting time on minor issues when major ones exist.
Transparency π β Everyone knows which bugs are being fixed and why.
π Final Thoughts
A Defect Triage Meeting ensures that the most important bugs are fixed first, making the product more reliable before release. It acts as a bridge between testers, developers, and business teams, ensuring better software quality, cost savings, and customer satisfaction.
So, whether youβre managing projects in the USA, UK, India, or anywhere else π, conducting regular defect triage meetings is a best practice in software testing that leads to successful product delivery.