Organizations must embrace new technologies in their product engineering efforts to stay ahead of the curve. But there is another quality that will be key this decade to giving product teams a proactive advantage: design. Design thinking should be embraced not just by designers, but by everyone involved with a product.

Releasing untested defect fixes into production is a real possibility. Being aware of how this can occur may help reduce the possibility of it happening. Let’s explore the common reasons defect fixes go untested—insufficient testing or resources, and undocumented fixes—as well as the steps we can take to prevent them.

Critical thinking is a core trait a software tester needs to succeed, and asking questions is a great skill to help. Questioning brings out the required information, breaks assumptions, and enables everyone on the team to give their perspectives. But there's an art to asking the right question at the right time.