{"id":1108,"date":"2019-06-10T18:43:08","date_gmt":"2019-06-10T18:43:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/talentedtester.com\/?p=1108"},"modified":"2019-06-10T18:43:08","modified_gmt":"2019-06-10T18:43:08","slug":"is-quality-assurance-a-good-career-path","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/talentedtester.com\/is-quality-assurance-a-good-career-path\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Quality Assurance a Good Career Path?"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you are new to the industry making a choice about quality assurance could be daunting. Is it really worth pursuing? could you earn well? Let me explain…<\/p>\n

Is quality assurance a good career path? Yes, it has many different high paying roles with great prospects. It is also something that you can feel proud about when asked “What do you do?” by a family member.<\/p>\n

Now you know its worth it, what kind of roles are there, how do you get in, what is the typical salary, and what qualifications do you need? Let me explain…<\/p>\n

What is quality assurance?<\/h2>\n

Quality assurance is a formalized process to prove that system requirements have been delivered and that the system is fit for purpose.<\/p>\n

It is actually twofold, firstly it focuses on confirming to the management and project team that the system has delivered as per the requirements.<\/p>\n

And also it there is a quality gate to make sure that customers receive the highest possible quality software.<\/p>\n

Why do companies even need quality assurance?<\/h2>\n

Quality assurance is important to companies for a number of different reasons. In this section, I’m going to break down a number of reasons why it is necessary:<\/p>\n

Reduces cost<\/h3>\n

This may seem like a funny thing to say because quality assurance in itself has costs. Such as paying for testers salaries, costs to draught up requirements by BAs and test planning, etc.<\/p>\n

However, after many years of experience of software production, the industry has been proven time and time again that it is cheaper to spend the money upfront to get the best quality rather than trying to clean up the mess after the software has been delivered.<\/p>\n

Once the software is live and in production it is very hard to control the costs and clear up the mess.<\/p>\n

Maintaining customer expectations and Brand loyalty<\/h3>\n

Apart from the actual costs of cleaning up errors once the system is live, there is also the potential damage to a companies reputation to consider.<\/p>\n

Once a customer gets frustrated with software they never really give it a second chance. They typically move onto the competitor as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

Therefore to avoid this happening in the first instance quality assurance is important to mitigate this risk.<\/p>\n

Improving team motivation<\/h3>\n

If your team respects the software that they’re working with they will work harder to maintain quality, simple!<\/p>\n

Think of it logically, if you were working in a restaurant and you know deep down the food that you’re serving is low-quality,\u00a0 will you feel embarrassed to serve the food? Of course!<\/p>\n

Let’s be honest, you may not even want to continue working there, right?<\/p>\n

It is the same concept as software. If your employees and team are passionate about the software, because it actually delivers, and is quality, then it will improve their morale and motivation. This is why quality assurance is important.<\/p>\n

So, what career paths are actually available in quality assurance?<\/h2>\n

Quality assurance has two major routes that you can take in your career:<\/p>\n