Technical and Business Skills for Software Testers

      
Introduction

Software testing is a lengthy procedure for finding bugs in software products. The world has experienced rapid growth in software products in recent years. As a result, software testing services have become an irreplaceable part of any app development cycle. The market responded to demand in software testing skills with a supply of more specialists for startups and big tech companies.

There is always a room for manual testing or full-stack automation engineers on the market. However, the market does not demand low-qualified working power. The minimum requirements for testers include scalability testing, UAT, load testing, black/white/grey box testing, system testing and unit testing.
Testing was previously seen as a support function, but now it’s an activity that requires a team of professionals capable of delivering fantastic products. Simple testing services have evolved into quality engineering processes essential for the evergrowing agile-business structure.

Essential professional and business skills for software testers

What skills do you need to be a software tester? According to bizcommunity, software testing is not always about working with computers and programs. It’s also about communication, thought processes, understanding of business, and adaptability to every situation. Typical requirements for staying in the QA business include:

– A bachelor’s degree in computer science;
– Knowledge of QA testing software;
– Experience in automation testing;
– SQL and scripting;
– Knowing at least one testing framework, like Azure, Jasmine, or JEST.
– Understanding of QA methodologies;
– Ability to work with Jira, ALM, HP, SOAP, TFS;
– Agile Development Process;
– Web-testing;
– Creating test plans;
– Ability to discover bugs in the software;
– Manual and Automated testing;
– QA environments understanding.

Technical skills are not the only way QA testers can sell their services on the market. Nobody wants to hire just regular nerds or bookworms without practical experience. HR specialists always search for experienced engineers for startups and big tech companies. These engineers must have analytical skills that usually include:

– Attention to details;
– Analyzing test results;
– Ability to learn and adapt to ever changing technologies;
– Problem-solving;
– Dividing the project into manageable bricks with progressive goals;
– Identifying areas to improve;
– Progressive skills development;
– Handle business challenges.

Communication is also essential for software testers because without delivering their ideas via language, there is no use in technical skills. Before any software delivery, a QA engineer should pitch his ideas, and, to do that, he needs to have good written and verbal communication skills.

Single tester vs Team of testers

A single tester without a team has little to no chances to survive in the current market situation. Globalization, changing technologies, and various business demands require a software tester to be adaptive. The best place to adapt would be a job in a software testing company. Businesses look at software testing companies as incubators for the development of software testing skills necessary for the market.

One tester is suitable for a single small project that does not demand a lot of work or investing in testing. At the same time, big businesses just can’t survive in the current market without a team of testers. Consumers are very demanding towards essential business products, and companies that do not want to invest in testers may end up investing in crisis managers.

Why is it better to hire a company for software testing services?

– 1. A team of specialists is always better than one.
– 2. When you work with a team proficient in software testing skills, you work with a bunch of professionals that can deliver your software faster, better, and at a lower price.
– 3. By hiring a software testing company, you hire not only testers, but also managers, hr specialists, project managers, and other professionals to deliver your product.
– 4. Businesses invest in software testers who work in teams due to the strong community and collaboration sense that can save a lot of money.
– 5. By working with a team of software testers, a business owner will have more guarantees that his product will be delivered on time.
– 6. Bug testing is better managed in teams when one tester can take responsibility for his small part of a project.
– 7. If something goes wrong, a team will have better chances to find a solution to any emerging bugs.

Conclusion

A software testing company has better chances of finding professionals for a project, and a team of professionals will have the upper hand over any individual software tester. They have a variety of software test services that will guarantee a good result. Thus, in more than half of cases, businesses choose to invest in software testing teams rather than single, even super-smart professionals.