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Mistakes We Make in Testing A tester starting in the profession recently asked Michael Sowers, "What are some of the most common mistakes we make as testers?" He wrote down some of the more common ones he could think of that are made before, during, and after testing. How many of these could you turn into learning opportunities? |
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Make the Effort to Invest in Yourself To keep relevant in an ever-changing industry, you need training. But many companies don't provide or reimburse for continuing education. That means you're responsible for your ongoing career development. Don't fret; you don't have to spend a lot. And the more you learn and practice, the more value you have. |
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What’s a Tech Lead? Decoding This Developer Role The role of technical lead can be hard to define, and in many cases people accept the role without knowing its definition. Because new tech leads are used to programming, many focus too much on the technical aspects and not enough on the people and the team. Read on to learn what's required of this role. |
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Look to Corporate Standards to Guide Your Organization In large organizations with distributed teams, departments can have their own procedures, acting as if they are in completely isolated silos. One approach to solving this issue is establishing corporate standards. Tap the models of widely used standards to create practical guidance for your own organization. |
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Drawing Motivation for Software Development Teams from Unlikely Places What do football or a submarine command have to do with agile success? At first, you might say, "Nothing." But football coaches, submarine captains, and their teams all have to establish a clear vision, analyze and prepare, and manage risks and adapt. Metaphors from other fields can motivate agile teams. |
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How to Deal with an Underperforming Employee (without Making It Awkward) Sometimes, an employee's ability just falls short of what your team needs. Talking to an employee about his performance can be uncomfortable, but it doesn't need to be. You need to make sure they know what’s expected of them, what kind of improvements you’re seeking, and how you’ll gauge their improvements. |
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Who’s Responsible for What? Use a RACI Matrix to Keep It Straight As projects get larger and more complex, roles and responsibilities can become confusing. To clarify, teams can create a RACI matrix: a chart that shows who is Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed for any work product. Each role has a different level of authority, so everyone knows their duty. |
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Dealing with Know-It-Alls A know-it-all is a person who is always ready with an unsolicited opinion—and a lengthy one, at that. Being on the receiving end of a lecture on something you don't care about or an uninvited correction is tedious at best. Naomi Karten provides ways to deal with a coworker or superior who's a know-it-all. |