How to write a good bug report?

Writing an effective bug report is crucial for the efficient resolution of software issues. Here are some tips to help you write clear and effective bug reports.

 Entry Criteria For Software Testing

Entry criteria in software testing refer to the conditions or prerequisites that must be met before testing activities can commence on a software project. These criteria ensure that the software is in a suitable state for testing and that the testing process can be conducted effectively.

Soft Skills To Become A Better Software Tester

In this article, we are going to discuss about the soft skills that every software tester should be aware of. Being technically strong will definitely help you in getting the software testing job that you have been dreaming of, but if you wish to excel in the software testing field in the long run, you need to have great soft skills, as well. There are quite a few non-technical skills that are required for being successful in testing. Now, let's have a look at the various soft skills that make you a successful software tester.

1. Communication Skills:

Good communication skills actually are one of the most important traits in a candidate for any position. For a tester, both verbal and written communication are crucial. Software testers need good communication skills to ensure test artefacts created by them, for example, test strategy, test plan, test cases, etc. are easy to understand by other members in the team.

As a tester, you must be able to clearly document and communicate defects in a program to developers, you need to update testing status of the project to clients, communicate your work progress to test management and prepare test reports for management, so effective communication is vital.

2. Prioritization Skills:

Testers have a lot of responsibilities. You'll need to write and execute test cases, document test results, report bugs, etc. Also, a tester may be involved in more than one project at the same time. So to be able to work in a fast-paced environment you should know how to prioritize tasks based on project deadlines. You should try to complete testing tasks in the order of priority rather than in the order they were assigned to you.

3. Organization Skills:

To be able to deliver work within the specified timeframe, you will need to organise your work. Even though you have a plan to complete your work on time, each day brings new challenges, for example, changes in requirements, unstable test environment, blocking issues, and your day may not end up the way you expected it to. With these in mind, you should hone your organization skills.

4. Time Management:

Time management skills are critical for Software Testers. You should have the ability to estimate the time needed to complete a testing task. For example, time to prepare the test environment, time to create test data, and the time required for the testing process. Prioritize the work that you have to do, determine the sequence of tasks and plan how you'll spend the available time. Sometimes there are too many activities going on at the same time especially during the software release. A software tester must be able to manage workload and maintain the productivity level.

5. Teamwork:

Teamwork skills are the skills that enable you to work well with others. Software test engineer work closely with every member of the software development team to build a product that meets end-user requirements. They collaborate with developers to resolve issues, collaborate with other team members to complete testing tasks. Employers expect employees to be team players. Candidates with strong teamwork skills are sought out by employers for many reasons.

 6. Attention to Detail:

Software testing engineer must have flawless attention to detail. Often small things can have a pretty serious effect on an entire application. They need the ability to notice small changes in a system and understand their significance.

7. Analytical Skills:

This is one of the essential requisites of a software tester. Software testers should be able to analyse every aspect of a system, identifying any potential weaknesses that could impact the overall quality.

8. Understand User Perspective

A test analyst must step into the shoes of an end user, only then he or she can understand the real needs of an end user and test the application accordingly. Understanding how end users use an application and how they interact with application will give insights on what really matters for end users.

9. Passion for Software Testing

In order to give the best out of your work, you should love what you do. To be a professional software tester, the candidate has to be passionate about the things he is dealing with.

Conclusion: Soft skills can be developed over time. With commitment to growth and continued learning, anyone can develop these skills. Possessing these skills not only make you an excellent tester, but helps the team succeed as well.

Reference – Must-Have Non-Technical Skills For Software Testers

 Must-Have Non-Technical Skills For Software Testers

What are the soft skills every QA professional should have? Being technically strong will definitely help you in getting the software testing job that you have been dreaming of, but if you wish to excel in the software testing field in the long run, you need to have great soft skills, as well. There are quite a few non-technical skills that are required for being successful in testing. Now, let's have a look at the various soft skills that make you a successful software tester.

 

How to Get a Job in Software Testing as a Fresher?

Software testing is one of the most sought-after careers in the IT world. After completing your bachelor’s degree, are you still thinking how to start career in software testing? In this video we will discuss about skills required to start career in software testing as a beginner.

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Scope of manual testing and career transition options for manual testers

Introduction: Automation testing is the buzzword everyone is talking about in software industry. Most IT companies and clients are trying to automate their tests as much as possible to reduce the efforts in a longer run. With all the projected and actual benefits, many people think that manual testing is going to go away in near future. However, the reality is far away from this. Manual testing and manual testing jobs are necessary and going to stay.

Scope and Importance of Manual Testing:

Testing is a necessary evil. To get a quality product, we need testing of product- whether it is manual testing or automated Testing. It is very important to choose the right type of testing for the application under test which can fit in the parameters of Cost, Quality and Time. Manual testing is integral to overall test strategy as it gives us the user acceptance point of view which is the highest parameter of quality. Manual testing allows us to understand how user connects to the application or device at an emotional level (This is a huge factor for a burgeoning gaming apps market) hence liking or disliking the product.

Manual testing is necessary in many ways where automated testing has a slight disadvantage. There are many types of tests that require human ingenuity and are better tested off manually. For Example -

1.       Usability Testing: Automated testing can work as much as intelligence given to the automated scripts. However, Automated Testing cannot decipher the overall usability of the product. Humans can have a reasonable and a holistic view to identify ease of use, user liking, color contrasts etc.

2.       Exploratory Testing: In exploratory testing, person’s experience with the application and/or domain along with analytical skills play a role. Hence, manual testing is required. In an exploratory test, creative and intuitive user journeys are done and hence automation will not be able to help in such cases.

3.       Flexibility: There is a slight advantage in terms of test flexibility when it comes to manual testing. Automated scripts run as per the pre-defined code and thus have fixed journeys. Any change in requirement or a thought to change the scenario will require modifying the code and hence take much more time. Manual testing enables testers to work on dynamic elements instinctively.

4.       Complex use cases: It is much easier to test the complex use cases with manual testing. For example, if an application journey requires to navigate through web, windows application, database, mobile interface- it is easier to do it manually rather than to engage a large tool stack and automate.

5.       Testing of scenarios which may be dependent on networks/external factors- Testing of scenarios like email, OTP verification are dependent on lot of external factors like internet speed and mobile network. Hence, they are better off tested manually.

6.       Cost Factor: Automation is costly for a small project. Automation tools have license, set up and scripting costs which may make a cost equation imbalanced for a smaller project. A manual tester can give the same output for a much lesser cost. However, keep in mind that, the same is not true for larger engagements.

What lies in future for a manual testing/Manual Tester?

Many testers do not have programming and coding knowledge. This is a harsh reality. With test automations on the rise, it is easy to think that there is nothing in future job market for manual testers. However, this is not right. Manual testing is rather evolving as per changing landscape of automation.

·         Manual testers have proficiencies in other areas which are very much in demand like Critical thinking, Analytical Skills, Domain knowledge etc. which no amount of automation can replace.

·         Like good detectives, manual testers have the investigative know-how and years of experience to identify bugs and guess where bugs tend to be masked.

·         Manual testers understand the flow of data from one system to other. They are aware of dependencies. This can help identify which are best tests to automate.

·         Good testers know which data permutations are most likely to occur and which will provide more value hence cutting down maintenance costs and increasing ROI on automation.

Career transition options for manual testers (which are not coding)

There are multiple options which can enhance the career trajectory for a manual tester. Examples –

·         Business Analyst- A tester with domain knowledge can transition to business analyst role and become an industry specialist.

·         Product Manager- This is a good transition for a QA person. A product manager is someone who can resonate with the user needs. They review customer needs, analyze the product repeatedly to make the software product quality better.

·         Agile Coach/Scrum Master – Since manual testers know the need of following processes, they tend to become good coaches too. Hence, scrum master or an Agile coach is an option to transition if you really resonate with Agile practices.

·         Test Manager- With experience, a manual tester can become a Test manager who delves more into strategizing of testing, deciding which type of testing suits the needs best.

·         Release manager- Testers have more holistic view of end-to-end development process. Hence, they tend to become better release managers

·         Audit roles – Testers know the importance of following a process. Hence, they are super fit for software quality assurance/auditing roles.

·         Data Scientists – If you are good with data, statistics, and analytics. This role is for you. As a data scientist you will implement functions like data exploration, regression models etc.

 Automation Tester Vs Manual Tester in Job Market:

There is no general rule whether an automation tester or a manual tester is of higher value to a project or a business.  It depends on whether You can add value to your business- Be it as automation tester or as a manual tester.

Competition-wise, automation testers have less competition in job market hence they command more value making this a niche skill set. Market demand for an automation tester is also on the rise because more and more repetitive tasks tend to be automated to save time. Hence, automation testing skills has a very lucrative market.

Here, it is necessary to mention that a similar value can be achieved by a manual tester with gaining domain knowledge, critical thinking and learning agile and cloud skills.

Impact of AI and ML:

Artificial Intelligence, Machine learning, Robotic process automation (RPA) are emerging technologies which are projected to be used for testing purposes. It is projected that AI and ML will be integrated in software QA and automation processes for faster speeds and bug resolutions. There is fear that AI and ML will eradicate software testing jobs. This is not entirely true. Instead of treating evolving technologies as a threat and fearing it, testers should upskill and improvise the test efficiencies. As like automated testing, AI and ML will complement the manual testing. Many areas are going to be exclusive to manual testing. Example usability testing, emotional connect with the product etc.

Conclusion: Automated testing and manual testing complement each other. However, there is no substitute for human ingenuity and thus no substitute for manual testing and manual testing jobs. Manual testing is very reliable when skills required are analytical reasoning, inference drawing and usability assessment. Automation and AI are here to help, and they should not be feared. Rather, they should be taken as opportunities to learn, upskill and integrate technology in testing jobs.

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