Nikita Klimov, Senior QA Engineer, ADP Inc. He has extensive expertise in testing mobile and web-based applications, focusing on accessibility. Nikita specializes in QA methodologies and the software development lifecycle (SDLC) and holds a Scrum Master certification.
When considering the role of a QA specialist, many perceive it as a "horizontal" position with limited career growth. However, there is the classic division of junior, middle, and senior levels: the more advanced the professional skills, the more value the QA brings to the company. This translates to higher salaries and greater recognition from colleagues and potential employers.
To reach the pinnacle of the QA profession, testers need full dedication, attention to detail, and strong structural thinking. It's also beneficial to understand marketing and business processes, which helps in grasping how the entire development team operates, what management expects from QA, and what end-users of IT products anticipate.
The Differences between Junior and Middle QA Roles
In IT, gradations define the set of skills and competencies a specialist possesses. HR departments often use the junior, middle, and senior classifications to simplify evaluations, though there are no clear-cut boundaries between these levels. Each company has its unique system for assessing QA knowledge and skills, which means changing jobs can sometimes lead to a change in status—not always upward.
The generally accepted three-level gradation assumes QA specialists possess a set of skills and abilities at each level that helps determine their expertise.
A junior QA is an entry-level tester who works with ready-made documentation and follows a step-by-step process to verify the functionality of the software.
Juniors typically do not write code. Their main task is to follow test cases or scenarios to check the program. Juniors must be able to identify errors in the code and report them. In general, they handle basic testing tasks, such as visual assessments of product performance, checking links, and ensuring calculators work correctly.
A middle QA, on the other hand, is a position that requires a deeper understanding of testing processes in addition to basic knowledge.
Middle-level QAs have a good grasp of various test design techniques, can analyze requirements, develop test plans independently, and create clear test documentation.
They should not only recognize bugs in the code but understand the entire testing process. Additionally, they must be able to analyze software requirements and develop minimal testing strategies, select appropriate tools and methods, and document their results clearly.
A common requirement for middle-level QAs is basic knowledge of SQL. They should be able to write SQL queries to check data, identify discrepancies in parameters, and analyze performance.
While advanced programming knowledge is not strictly required at this level, understanding and applying basic programming skills is a significant plus.
It's also beneficial for middles to be familiar with version control systems and the CI/CD tools used by their team, especially if involved in test automation.
The Specifics of a Senior QA Role
A senior QA is a lead tester who tackles more complex tasks, collaborates closely with software developers, and oversees the work of juniors and middles.
Essentially, a senior QA engineer has an in-depth understanding of testing at all stages of software verification and oversees these processes. This requires the ability to manually review all documentation, code, interfaces, and other critical product elements. In addition to manual work, senior QA engineers leverage automation tools such as libraries and frameworks, like Pytest for Python.
Seniors often possess programming skills to write automated tests using languages like JavaScript, Python, or Java, with frameworks like Cypress for JavaScript or JUnit for Java. They might use a different language for automated testing than the one used for software development.
Unlike juniors and middles, seniors emphasize soft skills, which are crucial for handling the responsibilities of their role. These include:
- Meeting with Product Owners to agree on requirements.
- Assisting the QA team in developing testing procedures.
- Supervising the creation of test documentation.
- Implementing QA testing processes and addressing software issues during monitoring.
- Conducting analytical reviews of product specifications and verifying quality assurance reports.
- Addressing feedback and requests from the project team and management.
- Applying professional management skills to organize team operations, including conducting training sessions, creating knowledge bases, and adapting documentation for less experienced colleagues.
The key distinction of a senior QA is the ability to see a project through to completion, handling all the issues and bugs in the testing process.
My experience in QA shows that a senior QA can achieve significant automation testing efficiency with their team using the Scrum methodology. While not a universal management technique, it is beneficial for many testers.
How Scrum Works in QA
Scrum is a framework, a type of Agile methodology. Agile is a flexible approach to IT project management characterized by short iterations (sprints) lasting one to four weeks or one month. Each iteration includes meetings like daily scrum (stand-up meeting), sprint planning, sprint review, and sprint retrospectives.
The goal of the Scrum framework for QA is to test and deliver a finished product to the client or user as quickly as possible without compromising quality.
The Scrum Team consists of 10 or fewer people: one Scrum Master who is accountable for establishing Scrum, one Product Owner who is accountable for maximizing the value of the product, and Developers (including QAs) who are committed to creating any aspect of a usable Increment each Sprint. Scrum is valuable for the entire development team and for senior QAs; it enhances essential soft skills for collaboration with the team and the Scrum master.
Scrum requires rapid adaptation from all team members. For senior QAs, this means organizing testing processes and making timely decisions on necessary fixes. If users find a bug in an app, the development team needs to release a patch quickly, and Scrum helps localize issues efficiently.
Since manual testing can take days, senior QAs initiate Scrum processes with regression test automation. This allows automated tests to cover new software features and code areas where bugs were found during sprints. Consequently, the QA department receives a comprehensive report pinpointing issues requiring bug fixes.
Benefits of Scrum for Senior QA
Scrum helps senior QAs streamline operations, automate bug detection, and significantly reduce work time.
For seniors, Scrum offers opportunities to develop soft skills, shifting from task supervision to full management of testing processes.
This enables QA engineers to create and manage testing strategies, fostering project vision and leadership skills.
