QA roles and responsibilities in software development can be \nconfusing. On message boards, even ones specific to testing, questions \nsuch as \u201cWhat\u2019s the difference between a tester and an SDET?\u201d and \u201cIs an\n SDET the same thing as an automation engineer?\u201d receive an array of \nanswers. This topic deserves some clarification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The source of the confusion can largely be attributed to the sheer \nsize and fluidity of the software development industry. Different \ncompanies use different job titles for the same roles and there is no \nauthoritative source or reference for the most common or up-to-date \ndescriptions. Many companies influencing the evolution of QA and the \ndefinition of roles are not even software-based companies, but rather \nhuge enterprises with large IT departments, adding even more to the \nvariability of job titles and requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
QA plays an important role in any company with technology products to\n release, whether small agile teams or large-scale IT departments with \nmany cross-functional teams working together to develop products and \nservices. QA can be viewed and utilized differently depending on the \nteam size and structure, and is often tailored to the needs of the \nspecific team and organization. QA is also often an entry role to \nsoftware development, meaning that people in QA sometimes understand \nless how they fit into the larger puzzle of software development than \nothers might.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So when a worker leaves a QA job at one company and searches for new \npositions, it can be difficult to determine what they should even search\n for. A Test Engineer for one company might be called a QA Analyst or QA\n Engineer at another. While all are titles for a Manual QA role, it \nmight take working at a few different companies before that\u2019s \nunderstood. Add other QA roles and title variations to the mix, with the\n additional understanding that the difference between software \ndevelopment and software testing can get blurry depending on the \nspecific hiring practices and processes in play at a given company, and \nit can be near impossible to make sense of it all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s unravel the confusion. Ultimately, there are three main \u201croles\u201d\n most commonly utilized to test a product and related systems: Manual \nQA, SDET (Software Development Engineer in Test), and QA Lead. All three\n can have different titles assigned to them at different companies \n(we\u2019ll use QA Engineer for the primary Manual QA title) and might have a\n mix of responsibilities and expectations within a given organization, \nbut at their core they are distinct. Let\u2019s break them down:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most Common Titles:<\/em> QA Engineer, Manual Tester, Software Test Engineer, QA Analyst<\/p>\n\n\n\n Core Responsibilities:<\/em> Manually test any product, service, \nor system; analyze requirements; write and run test cases (scripts); \nreport defects, and verify defect resolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In a large enterprise, manual testers might test APIs, backend \ndatabases, management systems, and so on, but most commonly they test \nfront-end products like websites and mobile applications where \nfunctionality and user experience is of utmost importance. While manual \ntesters often use tools like web proxies, SQL clients, or debug \nconsoles, most everything is usually done \u201cby hand.\u201d While the trend is\n to automate as much testing as possible, there are still many test \nscenarios that are not easily repeatable (or not possible to automate) \nand are more efficiently done manually. There is also no substitute for\n real user interaction with a product that manual testing provides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most Common Titles:<\/em> SDET, Automation Engineer<\/p>\n\n\n\n Core Responsibilities:<\/em> Create automated testing frameworks, \nanalyze requirements, code and run automated test scripts, report \ndefects, and verify defect resolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The simplest distinction between SDETs and QA Engineers is that SDETs\n write code and QA Engineers do not. Creating an automated test \nframework and writing associated test scripts requires coding ability, \nnot only to test but also to analyze the code of the software developers\n to determine what\/how to test. SDETs are utilized in many different \nways depending on a given project. Typically, they are the primary \ntesting resource for web services (APIs) and backend systems like \ndatabases. On front-end products, SDETs can be used for anything from \nunit and integration testing to UI automation. Also, because of their \nadvanced skillsets, SDETs are often responsible for the setup and \nmanagement of any continuous integration or continuous delivery tools \nthe team may be using. Skilled SDETs also often operate as part of a \nDevOps team in various capacities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most Common Titles:<\/em> QA Lead, Test Lead, Lead QA Analyst<\/p>\n\n\n\n Core Responsibilities:<\/em> Determine test strategy and process, \nmanage QA teams, prioritize QA tasks, create status reports, track \napplicable test metrics, and manage test devices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n QA Leads have a wide variety of job responsibilities because they \nneed to not only handle the day-to-day management of a QA team and \npotentially interface with external teams, but also to pitch in wherever\n and whenever needed to keep projects on track. This means that in \naddition to the core responsibilities listed above, they need to be \nprepared to do manual testing or possibly automated testing if they have\n the required skills. For large teams, a good lead can make all the \ndifference between a high-performing team and a struggling one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On-the-job responsibilities for these three roles generally fall into\n the descriptions listed above, but organizations can vary the \nresponsibilities based on their specific needs and budgets. At smaller \ncompanies it\u2019s not uncommon for all of these responsibilities to fall on\n one or two individuals. Larger companies are more likely to have some \ncombination of all three of these roles represented on one QA team, and \nwhen they do, their projects are often highly successful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The haze regarding the numerous QA job titles becomes clearer when viewing QA as a family of the three distinct roles discussed above, with most job titles falling under one of the three categories and generally involving the corresponding responsibilities. While organization size, budget and other factors might cause some blending or expanding of the roles, these guidelines can help make sense of the seemingly large amount of confusion about these roles among QA professionals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To read more thought leadership like “Clarifying QA Roles: Making Sense of an Array of Job Titles and Responsibilities<\/a>“, check out AIM Consulting’s blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" QA roles and responsibilities in software development can be confusing. On message boards, even ones specific to testing, questions such<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":1646,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[109],"tags":[],"post_function":[],"post_audience":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1645","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-recruiting"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSDET<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
QA Lead<\/h3>\n\n\n\n