Top Skills to Excel in Software Testing
Software Testing is evolving day by day and to excel in this field, even the SoftwareTesters have to evolve on a daily basis. This post is not about Why your product should undergo the Testing Process, instead, it’s all about how a Software Tester improves in him/her and how they can make a difference, add value and upraise the quality of your product. And for a Software Tester or Quality Professional, below mentioned points are must-have skills if they really wish to excel in the field of QA.
TESTING TOOLS & TECHNIQUES FOR VALIDATION AND VERIFICATION
It is necessary for every software tester to be aware of different testing techniques and use of tools. Regardless of the domain and application type, the knowledge of different testing types likes black box testing, penetration testing, security testing, system testing, unit testing, etc. makes testers versatile, helping them work on any kind of project. Moreover, with the number of tools that have been available in the marketing such bug tracking tools, test management tools, GUI testing tools, automation tools etc. it is also important for testers to get the knack of these tools to serve different requirements and complexities of the project.
ENVISION THE BUSINESS SOLUTION
A software tester should be able to envisage real-time business situations through mental mapping, abstracting the idea inferred from the specifications. Real-time business scenarios should crystallize in testers’ minds, and they should think about what test cases are, rather than what they ought to be. A tester should be able to anticipate complex problems, in addition to visualizing and articulating them. He or she should be able to do a complete system simulation rapidly and accurately. In the present software development environments.
ABILITY TO PROGRAM/CODE FOR AUTOMATION
When we talk about programming, it isn’t that testers need to work as a developer, but it is important to understand the inside out of the application so that it becomes easy to comprehend its functioning and create tests accordingly. Programming knowledge helps in identifying possible errors in the application code which further reduces the chances of bugs and application inefficiencies. It is advisable to learn at least two programming languages since there are brighter chances for testers to understand the workarounds of the application for ensuring better application quality lifecycle. To learn more about Automation click here
UI/UX SUPPORT
Unlike traditional set-up, modern-day test projects demand testers to be ready for providing customer support and think from their perspectives. Being a tester does not mean that they should always remain back office for they contribute equally to the success or failure of the test project and hence should always be available to respond to and support customer requirements, as and when required from UI/UX perspective.
PLAN AND MANAGE
Planning is nothing but writing the story of the future. A tester needs to have a detailed plan and must develop a well-thought-out test strategy and approach. And that plan must be in place before work begins on any software testing assignment. It should describe, among other details, the items, and features to be tested, test strategy and levels, pass/fail criteria, suspension/resumption criteria, schedule, and requirements. The plan should be monitored continually and validations are done through organized system feedback. Stick to the plan, and monitor the progress in order to ensure timely delivery.
NOT ONLY DESKTOP BUT ALSO WEB AND MOBILE
Every tester must gain experience with the web and mobile technologies so that they can understand the type of application, it's built and scalability and apply a suitable course of action for its testing. It is highly important that testers keep a tab on the web and mobile technology advancements since it guides them in comprehending the coding architecture and technical challenges to deliver effective QA solutions. Here is a Free Course on Web Automation using Selenium in just One Hour.
COMMUNICATION – WRITTEN & ORAL; REPORTING
Every tester should possess good communication skills. By good communication, we mean that they should be a good writer, speaker, listener and reader to communicate effectively with stakeholders such as update the status of the project to the clients, inform about requirements to the team, communicate issues to the developers, translate requirement documents to test cases and prepare reports for management. Apart from this, good communication helps in demonstrating a high degree of comprehension which further helps in conveying insights and giving feedback to both technical and non-technical people logically and rationally. A good tester must also possess good reporting skills to provide the exact status of the test project and application under test to stakeholders. This practice of reporting leads to better coordination of the overall test project and also gives transparency to the top management in terms of test cases executed, bug encountered, release timelines, etc. which eventually helps in taking the right decisions.
CONTINUE TO LEARN
Organizations and business environments change rapidly, which means the approaches and processes that work well today will be outdated tomorrow. Therefore, it is imperative that a tester notice, adapt and learn from change. That doesn’t mean that testers should undergo training or certification continually. Rather, they should be open to learning from everything in life. If a tester gains basic and fundamental knowledge, then the rest can be achieved through self-directed learning. In short, learning should be a lifelong habit. Interested to learn Test Automation, click here to enrol in a Free Course.
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