To succeed in any industry, continuous learning is a must and QA is no exception.
Every single profession implies constant learning and upskilling. Doctors, teachers, quality assurance engineers, etc. — we’re all upskilling all the time to stay relevant and well-paid. I also believe that we all strive to be better at our jobs not only because of money, but because of the satisfaction we get from doing things better.
There are also a few studies [1, 2] proving that continuous learning positively affects our health and morale.
Learning is a skill as well: the more we learn, the better we get at learning, the more results we get from it, and the more we enjoy it.
For companies, continuous learning is very beneficial since the employees get more professional and can perform their duties much more efficiently, thus improving company performance. When employees are involved in continuous learning, they can also help their company adapt faster to market changes. The reason for that is simple: the first step in adaptation requires learning what has changed. That is why so many successful companies invest in mentorship as well as internal and external training.
Continuous learning is essential for career growth
Software Development, Quality Assurance, and Testing are very vivid examples of work where continuous upskilling is not a “should have'' but a “must have.”
I started working as a frontend developer around 22 years ago. Ajax was just appearing: XMLHttpRequest was supported in Internet Explorer 5.5 through ActiveX, but was largely unknown by the market. In 5 years time, when Gmail gained significant market share, everyone had to learn how to add responsiveness to websites with Ajax. If I had ignored this knowledge, I wouldn’t have been hired anywhere. A similar thing has been happening in the last ten years with React/Vue and other modern Javascript libraries and frameworks: most companies use one or another, and demand that candidates know them.
In my testing experience I had to constantly learn as well: from testing theory to statistics, from ISO 9000 and 25000 to risk management.
In a previous article, QA myth busting: QA slows down work, we explored that QA includes testing, but is much more than just testing. Designing efficient and effective QA measures and implementing them requires a very diverse set of knowledge areas.
Expand your knowledge beyond QA
Of course, there are certain areas of expertise and baseline knowledge that QA professionals are expected to master such as an understanding of ISO quality standards. If you are dedicated to your work as a tester or QA engineer, you’ll find yourself learning quite a bit through your work. But you can (and should) take it beyond QA and study various other areas as well.
Take educational sciences, for instance. Since one of the main Quality Assurance measures is setting up continuous training, studying educational sciences will help you create effective training programs and promote continuous learning within the team. It will also provide an understanding of teaching methods which will help in mentoring and knowledge transfer, enhancing the overall skill level of the team.
Without this knowledge, it’s easy to fall prey to common misconceptions or myths, for example to “Code review is good for learning” or “assessments are required to plan Individual Development Plans (IDP)”.
Studying educational sciences will allow a QA specialist to design effective and efficient strategies for continuous learning, such as ensemble (mob) programming and testing, quality circles, and internal systems of mentorship.
I also find studying various theories can help QA specialists approach work more strategically. For example, learning queuing theory will help you understand how to manage waiting times and bottlenecks in processes, leading to more efficient workflows within the team. Understanding queueing theory is essential for designing when testing occurs and how it occurs.
Consider this scenario: on December 1st the team decides that the redesign of the online shop should be released a month before Valentine’s day so that clients will benefit from new functionality and purchase more gifts for their loved ones. The team consists of two backend developers, one frontend developer, a designer, and a tester. They all agree that this redesign will demand some backend and design work, and a decent amount of frontend work. Their decision to give this redesign the highest priority implies that they have just 6 weeks before the planned release date. The team also agrees that the new version of the online shop should not behave less predictably than the current one, otherwise the clients will buy less, rendering the whole project a waste.
How would a QA specialist approach assuring that the release would be of good quality, considering that there's a significant amount of uncertainty in coordinating the work?
With basic knowledge of queueing theory, a QA specialist can estimate average turnaround times and wait times in the team’s development and testing and can choose an optimal work approach which would assure there’s enough time for proper development and testing.
Find an area that interests you
I could write ten different articles about the different fields of study that I believe would be beneficial to QA professionals, but the key is truly to learn how to apply knowledge from one area to another — and that works best if you start with something that interests you.
Let’s say you’re into design. Studying aesthetics and ergonomics could be a great way for you to expand your knowledge. Understanding the principles of design helps in creating visually appealing and user-friendly products, which can enhance user satisfaction and perceived quality. Similarly, ergonomics will help ensure that products are designed for user comfort and efficiency, reducing errors and increasing productivity.
Consider how knowledge about these topics could be applied to QA work:
- Organizational psychology and game theory will provide insights into how individuals and teams function within organizations, helping to design collaborative processes that enhance productivity and morale.
- Psychology of work will give the understanding of human behavior in the workplace and how to build better team dynamics and more effective quality assurance practices.
- Systems theory will give a holistic view of how different parts of an organization interact, helping QA professionals understand the broader impact of quality issues.
- Operations research will provide analytical methods to help improve decision-making and efficiency in quality assurance processes.
- Cybernetics will help you understand the principles of feedback and control systems, which are crucial for understanding how to maintain stability and performance in complex systems.
- Total Quality Management (TQM) provides a comprehensive approach to long-term success through customer satisfaction, focusing on continuous improvement and involving all members of the organization.
Make learning a part of your routine
We learn by doing, but as “there’s nothing more practical than a good theory,” continuous learning in QA areas will improve the way a QA specialist works.
Learning is just a skill, and one can improve their learning a lot. According to educational sciences, there are multiple ways to do so. I’ve practiced all of them and I love them.
First, of course, you can study on your own. Simply start reading good books on all the areas listed above (and seek out additional topics that interest you).
To get the most out of reading books, the practice should become a routine. Making it a routine implies regularly devoting time, and not simply reading but at least summarizing what you’ve read and trying to apply it to the work you perform. For example, if you read a queueing theory book, it’s important to try applying the newly acquired knowledge to the work processes on your team. If you also write a blogpost or an article on what you’ve learned and how you applied this knowledge, you will get even a better understanding. It’s a well-studied fact that when we practice and reformulate our learnings, we understand them better.
I have 4 hours per week blocked specifically for reading books, and when I’m reading each one I’m trying to reflect how the work I’m doing can be improved with what I’ve read.
Find a mentor
Getting a mentor greatly complements reading books. A mentor essentially provides you an elective class where you’re the only student. All their attention is just for you. A good mentor will teach you in a way tailored to your gaps and strengths. This learning method is proven to improve your learning significantly.
There’s a mentorship program in most companies, but if there isn’t one in yours, you can request to create one. If you aren’t able to set the mentorship program in your company, you can find mentors elsewhere: there are multiple websites with thousands of mentors in various fields.
However, choosing a mentor is as hard as choosing a good doctor since there’s a great deal of asymmetry of knowledge: as a mentee you might not know enough to judge if the mentor possesses a good level of knowledge in the field you’re looking into. In my experience, this problem is best solved by referrals. If you have friends or colleagues who already studied a certain topic with the help of mentors, their review and referral will help you choose the right one.
Become a mentor
Educating someone improves your learning even better than summarizing what you’ve learned in an article. When you’re explaining a concept applied to a different context, you understand it really well.
It’s also easier to establish a mentorship program at your company if you come up with a proposal of mentoring others and getting mentored in return. Mentoring your colleagues and peers in your areas of expertise also significantly improves relations within the company.
Organize learning groups
Educational science still discusses whether solo learning with a teacher is more efficient than group learning. There are pros and cons for both solo learning with a mentor and collaborative learning.
Collaborative learning is clearly better from the social interaction perspective: learners construct knowledge through social interaction and collaboration, which allows them to bond better. Most companies want better teamwork, and collaborative learning improves teamwork quite a bit.
In collaborative learning, learners explain concepts to each other, provide feedback, and fill knowledge gaps faster than in solo learning. Additionally, collaborative learning increases motivation, engagement and discipline through social interaction and the feeling of being part of a community.
Collaborative learning exposes people to diverse perspectives, and engaging in discussions and debates within a group can lead to a deeper understanding of the subject matter by challenging assumptions and refining ideas in a constructive way.
However, collaborative learning requires a certain company culture. For example, when a company focuses on grading and performance reviews, collaborative learning would not yield good results. Psychological safety is a requirement for effective collaborative learning: in groups, people must feel safe to show that they do not understand something.
A simple way to organize a collaborative learning group is to implement a quality circle at work.
Embrace ensemble (mob) work
Ensemble (mob) work involves the whole team working together on the same task. It enhances collaboration, improves problem-solving skills, and accelerates learning.
This approach to work ensures that the entire team's attention is directed towards a single task, allowing any knowledge gaps to be promptly identified and resolved.
Embrace the continuous learning journey
Continuous learning is not just beneficial, it’s essential for personal and professional growth. By incorporating various learning strategies and focusing on key knowledge areas, individuals and organizations can achieve greater efficiency, adaptability, and success.
In QA, continuous learning involves understanding diverse knowledge areas beyond just testing, including fields such as educational sciences, statistics, software engineering, queueing theory and various others. Knowledge in these areas helps QA professionals design effective processes, improve system quality, and make more informed decisions.
Embrace the journey of lifelong learning to stay relevant, innovative, and fulfilled in your career.
