SIX JOB TITLES FOR A TESTER

By Rumki Chowdhury

Being a tester is not as static as the members of a class on JavaScript or in a Maven Project. Being a tester broadens your horizons to a plethora of impressive-sounding titles and the opportunity to move up the ladder. Think of the hierarchy of testing as simple as continuous performance testing, CPT for short, a type of testing that continuously monitors an application’s performance as the load on it increases. To become a leader in the trade, you are constantly developing or “loading” the knowledge necessary to sit on the throne of success.

After having studied manual testing for some time now, I was browsing various job sites when I asked myself:

1.What will my job title be? 

2.Can I become a leader? 

The second question I have already answered in the introduction: Yes, 100 percent! Regardless, I will highlight some leadership roles later on. The first one, however, is a bit more complex; one could say, it’s as complex as coding or a programming language that translates to “Hello World:” 

// Your First Program

class HelloWorld {

    public static void main(String[] args) {

        System.out.println("Hello, World!"); 

    }

}

I hope I haven’t lost you, but if  you feel lost in the above programming language, it's okay, you’re a TESTER, not a PROGRAMMER. On the other hand, basic programming language knowledge may prove beneficial for you. Before I get into the various software testing career titles, here is a concise refresher on SDLC or the Software Development Life Cycle: 

Therefore, your job description may match any of the phases you see in The Software Development Cycle. See below some of the more common job titles and concise descriptions:

1.Software Tester: Analyzes documents like users’ stories and requirements before collaborating closely in a team to ensure that those requirements are met. During this process, the tester is performing various tests and constantly logging or documenting the results, most likely on JIRA, a project management tool. Other titles may be Test Consultant, Test Analyst, Manual Tester, QA Analyst or Automation Tester. 

2.Manual Tester: Works closely within a team to ensure all QA (quality assurance) testing necessities are met. This includes during the UAT (User Acceptance Testing) or PROD (production phase) and SIT (System Integration Testing) phases in the SDLC. The manual tester is executing functional (verification that the requirements are met), ad-hoc (minimal documentation and lightweight testing), smoke testing (verifies stability of software application). In addition, there are other testing as in negative testing, stress testing, regression testing, etc. This may also include making sure that the application is compatible across various platforms and web browsers. All this documentation includes reports on any bugs or defects that the developers may need to fix before retesting. They may write SQL queries and use the loadrunner tool, to measure system behavior. Other titles may be Test Consultant, Test Analyst, Manual Tester, QA Tester, Test Engineer or Automation Tester. 

3.Test Consultant: Involved in all phases of SDLC. They have experience in automation testing, exploratory testing and understand the methodologies of Agile and DevOps. Their role is to unite all team members of the SDLC and make sure the collaboration remains strong. Another title may be QA Analyst.

Anyone who has been a tester may also be an excellent candidate for the role of Scrum Master, Product Owner/Director, or Business Analyst: 

4. Scrum Master: Works closely together with developers and testers, and assists the Product Owner/Director by facilitating meetings and acting as coach to unite all team members to achieve strict deadlines of quality assurance. 

5.Product Owner/Director: Takes the lead role in ensuring that the user requirements are met, deadlines are met and that there is a successful purchase from potential stakeholders. 

6.Business Analyst: Works closely with the product owner/director by managing the user stories or requirements and to ensure there are solutions to any problems that may arise within the Agile methodology. 

As complex as the above roles are, I tried to keep it as simple as possible, like breaking them up into compartments within an Agile Framework. The only catch is that all deadlines are your own. Remember, no matter what, the best qualities in a tester are curiosity, the ability to meet strict deadlines, an analytical mind, excellent communication skills, and detail-oriented writing skills. Additionally, the best qualities of a leader as in the roles outlined in numbers 4, 5, and 6 are commitment, focus, active listening, problem-solving skills, openness and respect. 

About the Author: Rumki Chowdhury is an award-winning published author and editor who has also accumulated considerable knowledge in the world of software testing. Her most recent roles include manually testing for an audiobook company and being a technical writer for TEP Solutions. Moreover, she has a Masters Degree in English Literature from the Queen Mary University of London and a Bachelor's Degree in English Writing from the William Paterson University of New Jersey.