Are you being told what or how to test by other project team members?

One problem that I have come across in organisations is other project members telling me or team members how or what to test. Like all testing professionals I actively want to hear everyone’s thoughts and feedback, however, there has to be a point where there is a boundary where you need to be left to perform the core role you are here to do.

Have you ever been told what or how to test? How did you handle it? I would be interested to hear from you and learn what you did in that situation.

I was in a situation where we were delivering a solution by a certain date, however, the requirements were all over the place and it was not clear exactly what we were delivering. It was mistaken to be a problem that we basically didn’t know what or how to test, but that wasn’t the root cause of the problem. There was no clear delivery plan. The team was not clear what to get out the door.

To solve this we got on a call with stakeholders and discussed the requirements. Initially the stakeholders were telling us that they could tell us what or how to test, but I said to them that my team are experts in software testing and can figure all of that out. What I’d like from you is to understand what features you want as part of this first release. I went as far as making a suggestion.I believe X Feature is the first on our list — they discussed a little and then agreed. Then I asked, So what else? In which they then agreed to two more features. At the end I summarized, so these three features you want out? Ok, leave with us and we’ll work with the team.

A second example that I’ve noticed is that testing is invisible to other project team members, which makes them start to feel uneasy or it’s not in control. How to get around this and what I believe all software testing professionals do is make your testing visible. . See previous blog post. https://fishouthebox.medium.com/testing-principle-5-visibility-3856de5c1e4b There are lots of ways you can do this, such as sharing your test ideas or debrief project team members on your test execution.

Overall, I’ve found that boundaries are important for wellbeing and healthy relationships with people. Along with showcasing confidentally my skills and perform the core role that I’m hired to do.