For years in the software industry, the focus of discussion, programs, and expense has been on career skill development to enhance team performance. To support skill development, a variety of certifications and training opportunities have been created to increase technical knowledge acquisition. Gaining technical knowledge is important, but this knowledge is often secondary to having other skills that are of more value to the organization. Jon Hagar explores these so-called “soft” skills—analysis, rational thought, communication, mentoring, technical debt management, reframing problems, modeling, time management, and social aptitude—and discusses the differences between knowledge from study and practiced skills. Delegates are asked to consider the value and to discuss how to develop and improve such skills. Finally, through an entertaining analogy Jon highlights the differences between skill and knowledge.

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BT8
Concurrent!Session!
11/12/15!1:30pm!
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“Soft Skills You Need Are Not Always Taught in
Class”
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Presented by:
Jon Hagar
Independent Consultant
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Brought(to(you(by:(
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340!Corporate!Way,!Suite!300,!Orange!Park,!FL!32073!
888&268&8770!I!904&278&0524!I!sqeinfo@sqe.com!I!www.sqe

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Jon Hagar is an independent consultant working in software product integrity, testing,
verification, and validation. For more than thirty-five years Jon has worked in software
engineering, particularly testing, supporting projects which include control systems (avionics
and auto), spacecraft, IoT, mobile-smart devices, and attack testing for smart phones. He
authored Software Test Attacks to Break Mobile and Embedded Devices; has presented
hundreds of classes and more than fifty conference presentations; and written numerous
articles. Jon is an editor for ISO, IEEE, and OMG standards.
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Jon Hagar
Independent Consultant

3. So#$Skills$You$Need,$Are$Not$Always$
Taught$in$Class$
Jon$D.$Hagar,$Consultant,$Grand$So#ware$Tes?ng$
embedded@ecentral.com$
1$
Got bugs?
Get a tester with great skills.$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
• What$does$it$take$to$be$a$GOOD$Tester?$
$
• Knowledge?$$
• Skill?$
– Do$you$want$to$be$a$GREAT$.$.$.$
Copyright$2015$$Jon$D.$Hagar$$P$“So#ware$Test$ARacks$to$Break$Mobile$and$Embedded$Devices”$
2
Your%Opportunity%

4. The%Subjects%at%Hand%
• Schools$of$tes?ng$
• Sampling$of$skill$lists$
• Knowledge$vs$Skill$
$
• Sampling$of$test$skills$you$may$have$missed$in$other$classes$
• How$to$become$a$beRer$tester$
$$$$$$$$$$$Note:$These$are$my$opinions$
3$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
Schools$of$Tes?ngPPA$Debate$that$Impacts$Skills$
• ContextPdriven$–$“it$depends”$and$tes?ng$is$highly$skilled$
• ProcessPdriven$(aka$Factory)$–$knowledge,$standards$&$procedures$
• Quality$Assurance$(aka$Checking)$–$following$a$defined$process$
• Academic$–$tes?ng$is$a$problem$for$techniques$and$tools$
• Agile$–$focus$small$teams$doing$TDD$and$ATDD$with$explora?on$
4$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

5. A$Test$Industry$Ques?on$
• What$does$it$take$to$be$a$“good”$tester?$
• A$debate$exists$and$is$associated$with$the$“schools:$of$tes?ng$
$Part$of$the$debate$is$$$P$$$$$
– Knowledge$or$$
– Skill$or$$
– Procedures$(wriRen$or$automated)$
• What$is$tes?ng$based$in$
5$
Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
KnowledgePbased$Tes?ng$$
• Books$of$knowledge$in $$
– QAI,$ISTQB,$ASQ,$IIST,$and$others$$
• IEEE$has$®SWEBOK$
– So#ware$including$tes?ng$
– Systems$and$computer$science$
• General$understanding$can$be$a$benefit,$from$
– Discipline(s)$–$various$college$degrees$can$come$into$
tes?ng$
– Art$and$music$–$these$are$disciplines$
• To$some$extent$the$academics$view$tes?ng$as$“knowledge”$$
$ 6$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

6. ProcedurePbased$Tes?ng$
• Plans$and$scripts$designed$into$documents$
– e.g.,$$ISO$29119$
• O#en$can$be$Automated$with$tools$
– ModelPbased$
– KeywordPbased$
• The$thought$is$that$“anyone$can$be$a$tester”,$except$
– The$test$automa?on$person$
– The$test$architect$$
– The$test$designer$
– Analyst$or$systems$person$
– These$are$“test”$related$too$
$ 7$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
SkillPbased$Context$Tes?ng$
• For$me,$requires$the$previous$knowledge$bases$and……$
• Other$skills:$
– Skill$list$in$work$by$Associa?on$of$So#ware$Tes?ng$(AST)$
– Millions$of$Google$hits$
– Sampling$on$next$pages$
• Prac?ce,$Prac?ce,$Prac?ce$
• Also,$there$are$many$different$levels$of$any$skill$
8$
Can we have testers at different levels?
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

7. $$Distribu?on$Curve$
(if$testers$were$normal)$
9$Copyright$2014,$Jon$D.$Hagar$$$$$Grand$So#ware$Tes?ng$
More$Likely$Tester$Distribu?on$Curve$
10$Copyright$2014,$Jon$D.$Hagar$$$$$Grand$So#ware$Tes?ng$
The newbie tester -> Thinking tester ------------------------------------------Context tester (it depends) ->Pragmatic Tester-> The Few

8. Sampling$of$Tester$$
Skills$
MANY$MANY$$MANY$
Test$skill$=$22$million$Hits$on$Google$
$
And$most$taught$in$class$
$
11$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
Basic$From$blog.inf.ed.ac.uk$
$
12$blog.inf.ed.ac.uk

9. From$Novosas$
13$
novosas.com
From$Ministry$of$So#ware$Tes?ng$
$
hRp://www.ministryo#es?ng.com/$ 14$

10. Tester$Skill$List$(long)$
15$
List © 2001 by Bernie Berger
Cross-functional effectiveness
Test environment set-up
Version control/change mgmt.
Industry knowledge
TQM/CMM/ISO
Sigma/IEEE
Quality economics
Statistics and probability
Professional affiliation/certification
Efficiency implementation
Metrics and measurement
Risk analysis
Root cause analysis
Incremental test strategies
Quality advocacy
Macintosh user skills
Energetic
Sense of humor
Persuasive
Good judgment
Problem solver
Detail-oriented/meticulous
Enthusiastic
Assertive
Articulate
Inquisitive
Organized
Thorough
Team Player
Honesty
Basic testing
Software life-cycle
Basic technical aptitude and awareness
Basic/Advanced Internet
Manual black box testing
MS Windows user skills
Communication written/oral
Test planning
Test documentation
Defect reporting
Basic programming concepts
Basic software engineering
Basic system architecture
Basic database
Basic comm protocol
Quality control/quality assurance
Process improvement/methodology
Software testing phases
Software testing concepts
Automated test scripting
Evaluation of automated test results
Record/playback
Editing automated scripts
Analytical skills
UNIX user skills
SQL user skills
Web testing skills
James$Bach’s$$List$of$What$Tes?ng$is$
16$

11. Even$Some$Funny$Skill$Lists$
17$
blog.smartbear.com
Most$of$the$items$listed$can$be$taught$in$classes$
$
But$real%skill%must%be%prac:ced%
$
18$

12. The$Pragma?c$Tester$(an$accep?ng$context$tester)$
$
• Like$so#ware$programming$
• Like$prac?cing$medicine$$
• Like$sports$(skiing)$
• All$of$these$“bases”$are$needed$for$the$pragma?c$testers$
– Knowledge$
– Tools$$
– Skill$
– ContextPthinking$
– Procedures$(following$some$rules,$standards,$or$guidelines)$
– Techniques$and$quality$
– Agility$
$$$$
19$
Testing skills work to address the most Interesting problems in software
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
20$
You may have the Talent to get or gain knowledge, but..
You still do NOT have Skill, until you practice

13. $$$$$$Let’s$Consider$a$Downhill$Skiing$Analogy$
• Skiing$requires$skill$with$different$levels$of$skiing$
• Skiing$requires$some$knowledge$
• Skiing$requires$some$talent$and$much$prac?ce$
• Skiing$requires$procedures$as$well$as$tools$
• There$are$“rules”$and$guidelines$for$skiers$to$consider$
• Skiing$has$many$different$contexts$(condi?ons)$
$$$$You$can$read$a$book$on$it,$but$does$that$make$you$a$tester?$
21$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
Skiing$has$Many$Skill$Levels$
(each$must$be$prac?ced$for$hours,$days,$years?)$
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$You$may$die$(Expert)$
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$Expert$(Advanced)$
$$$$$$$$$$ $ $ $$$$$$$Intermediate$
$ $ $$$$$$$Beginner$
$
• Then$there$is$a$ neverPever $
$$$$$(never$been$on$snow$or$skis$before)$
• Anyone$can$read$a$book$or$a$magazine$on$skiing,$perhaps$
even$pass$wriRen$tests$on$skiing$but,$they$would$NOT$$have$
the$skill$to$ski$any$run$listed$on$the$right—hence,$they$are$a$
never$ever $
22$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

14. Skill$example:$What$about$the$Planning$Guidelines?$
(here$is$a$plan$(a$map)$of$where$to$ski)$
• But$the$plan$(or$map)$is$nothing,$the$planning$is$everything$and,$
without$skiing%SKILL%you$had$beRer$plan$on$staying$on$the$bunny$
slope$or$else$
23$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$Without$skiing$skill,$if$you$get$on$a$
“not$for$beginner”$hill….$
24$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

15. ….$Bad$Things$May$Happen$–$OUCH!$
25$
Moral of the Story
To$handle$the$“cliff”$slope$or$“steep$and$
deep”$stuff$and$to$avoid$crashing$
you$must$prac:ce$.$.$.$$
just$as$your$teacher$and$Will$Smith$$
speak$about$
26$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

16. How$to$Start$Knowledge:$on$the$Bunny$Slope$
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$(and$con?nual$learning)$
• Bunny$star?ng$$tester$
– Cer?fica?on$
– Standards$
– Test$books$$$–$I$have$over$100$test$books$
– Classes$$P$Many$colleges,$AST,$and$professional$classes$
– Conferences$
• Where$you$are$now$
27$
I still go to “class” to
gain knowledge
from other “schools”
and styles of testing
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
Example$2$:$Tools$to$Handle$Snow$(for$skiing)$$
What$tools$do$you$need?$
28$
You thought of this, but you probably did not think of these
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

17. What$do$the$Examples$Show?$
• In$my$view,$the$classes$and$training$do$NOT$teach$skills$$
• We$must$prac?ce$tes?ng$$
29$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
$$$$$$$$$Pragma?c$Skills$You$Might$Be$Missing$
$
• Risk$Taking$
– In$skiing:$If$you$are$not$falling,$you$are$not%learning%
– Testers$doing$the$same$things$over$and$over$and$expec?ng$
different$results$(One$defini?on$of$insanity)$
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

18. $$$$$$$$$$What$else?$
$
• Skill$to$avoid$drinking$the$KoolPaid$
$
– Standard$–$ISO29119$
$
– Test$automa?on$
– Unthinking$monkey$and$regression$tes?ng$
31$
Use tailoring and apply in only appropriate contexts (educate management)
Use automation when “advantages” are realized but do not expect “magic bullets”
Use other test techniques and concepts such as data or behavior driven testing
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
One$defini?on$of$tes?ng:$$$
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$Ac?vi?es$to$provide$informa?on$(data)$about$a$
product$
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$s$=$Data$
• History$of$computers$
• $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$There$is$an$App$for$That$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$????????????????$SODA$
Limited$Data$$PPPPP$$Personal$Data$PPPPPP$Massive$Web$Data$PPPP$App$Sliced$Data$PPPP$SelfPOrganizing$Data$Associa?ons$$
• Bug$Data$Analy?cs$P$$PaRerns$of$bugs$=>$$
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$Model$paRerns$for$exploratory$test$ 32$
$$$$$$$$$$$Learn$From$and$Use$Your$Test$Error$Data$
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

19. $
• Honesty$$
– Do$people$trust$you?$$$
– Can$you$deliver$informa?on$without$it$becoming$“personal”$(see$poli?cs)?$
• Avtude$$
– Are$you$happy$at$work?$$$
– When$you$find$a$bug$and$report$it,$does$the$developer$get$happy$too?$
How$about$management—do$they$get$happy?$
• Poli?cal$
– Being$nice—no$maRer$the$circumstance$(a$skill)$
– Dealing$with$difficult$people$posi?vely$(a$skill)$
– Dealing$with$bad$situa?ons$$posi?vely$(a$skill)$
33$
$$$$$$$$$$$More$Traits$You$Might$Be$Missing$
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
And$More$Things$I$Build$Skills$In$
• NonPso#ware$sciences$and$disciplines$
• Successful$coaching$and/or$mentoring$$
$
• Triage$$
• Real$management$$
• Of$teams$
• Of$managers$
• Of$self$
• Passion$
34$
(number 1 for me)
Cheers
Don’t Care Testers
Hard Work Testers
Obsessed
Testers
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

20. Brainstorm$a$skill$you$have$that$isn’t$taught$
Name$some$other$skills$that$you$feel$are$important$for$testers$to$
have$and$demonstrate$that$I$may$have$missed$.$.$.$$
35$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
Expecta?ons$about$Knowledge$and$Skill$
• Seek$knowledge$and$build$skill$
– Time$
– Cer?fica?ons$
– Take$risks$in$new$jobs$
• I$am$asked$$$“How$did$$you$get$your$job?”$
$
– 35$years$$P$I$am$s?ll$learning$and$prac?cing$
– Prac:ce.$Prac?ce.$PRACTICE$
36$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

21. When$you$get$home:$Assess$Your$Skills$
• Conduct$a$personal$assessment$every$few$
months$or$so$
• Compare$against$“benchmarks”$(skill$lists)$
• Capture$the$assessment$in$a$career$plan$
37$
Be Honest with yourself
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
Road$map$of$many$paths$to$get$to$a$goal$
(no$wrong$path$but$some$may$be$beRer$for$one’s$skill$set)$
38$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

22. Many$Skills$&$Study$
Hard%Work%
Tes?ng$Skill$Trails$(of$infinite$paths)$
39$
No$Formal$School$
Become%Expert%
College%
Cert%
%OJT%
%Standards%
%Gain%
Knowledge%
Prac?ce%
%Skilled%
Tester%
Prac?ce$
$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$
Summary$
• To$be$good$testers,$we$need$
– Knowledge$
– Skill$
– Prac?ce$with$passion$
$
• Classes,$references,$and$conferences$give$you$some$of$these$%
• Tes?ng$is$a$prac?ce$that$takes$years.$$
• Be$a$pragma?c$tester–$know$all$schools$
• Learn$from$the$DATA$
40$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$

23. References$and$Pointers$
• Colorado$Ski$Country$
• ISTQB$
• IEEE$
• ISO$
• AST$
• Google$
• Special$Thank$you$–$James$Bach$and$Bernie Berger$$
41$$Copyright$Jon$Hagar$2014$