When you've worked for months on a big software release, afterward you may want to jump into the next project. But building in some slack time between sprints is a good idea. After a big release, there will probably be more work as new users discover bugs in your software. Plan for some more testing and development.

Quality is now considered everyone's responsibility, and many developers are acquiring testing skills to validate their code before it gets to dedicated quality engineers. But where should you start? Consider beginning with unit tests that help you write better code, then building to integration tests and E2E testing.

Some defects require a fix, without a doubt. But not all defects are created equal, so careful thought should be applied before a defect is fixed. The goal isn’t to fix every reported defect; it’s to return value to the customer and profit to the company. These eight questions can help in the decision-making process.