Building a QA team — Part 3

Building a QA team — Part 3

This is part 3 of the ‘Building a QA team’ series. In this series, I’ve explained what I’ve learnt in the creation of a great team, I’ve also explained the methods I’ve used to create the initial team using a set of shared values.
In this final part, I expand on the methods I use to help ensure that the team continuously improves:

Part 1:

• The problem I’m trying to solve
• What is a team?
• The qualities I look for in team members
• The qualities I aspire to live up to as a lead
• A conclusion of what I’ve discussed and a primer for the next post

Part 2:

• The process of building the team
• The values I would want to embed
• Inclusivity, Diversity, Openness and Accountability
• A conclusion of what I’ve discussed and a primer for the next post

Part 3:

• The ongoing development of the team
• Learning, Business As Usual and Socialisation
• A conclusion of what I’ve discussed
• An overview of the process as a whole

Build on the foundation that the team has established, not change for change’s sake

This final part will address the methods I’ve used to achieve the continuous, incremental improvements that identify a growing team.
I also discuss motivation as a key factor.

This includes do’s and don’ts.

Ones where I’ve been responsible and ones where I’ve been on the receiving end.

One mistake I frequently encounter is that continuous improvement is mistaken for root-and-branch change.
I look for subtle changes that build on the foundation that the team has established, not change for change’s sake.

Ongoing Development

The team has formed, they appear to work well together as a specialist function and for each other and in their own cross-functional team.
Specialists in their respective cross-functional teams are making the right noises.

You’ve helped to create a diverse set of individuals with the essential mix of soft and hard skills who encapsulate what you look for in a high-performing team.

The organisation is aware of what you’re trying to accomplish. If they don’t, socialising the goals and objectives of the team is required.
At this point it’s very easy to sit back and bask in the reflected glory.

This is a bad idea.

The hard part begins now.

As individuals become comfortable (The ‘norming’ part of Tuckmans model), it’s very easy to fall back into behavioural norms that can disrupt the hard-won team ethos.

Learning

It is never just about learning a new framework or how to implement a pipeline.

Secure a training budget
People like to feel valued.

If budget permits, secure an amount to allow people to attend training to learn a new skill or purchase a book.

Create a process to make this as easy as possible and communicate this process to the team.

If the budget is not available, make use of the multitude of free courses available online such Test Automation University or reputable sources on youtube / linkedin.

It does not have to be technical training.

A QA is a multi-faceted role that relies as much (if not more) on learning about the human experience, critical thinking, negotiation skills, conflict resolution, human-centered design, risk detection and management.

It is never just about learning a new framework or how to implement a pipeline.

There is no downside to this approach.

As long as the course can show a tangible benefit to the function of the team and the individuals role within it then everyone wins.

Learning sessions
Enable the team to spend 10–15 minutes a day researching a technique, reading a blog or book, visiting a forum, experimenting with a tool.

It can be in their specialisation or a specialisation they are unfamiliar with, anything that helps them to be better QE.

It can be design / UX / development / architecture/team-working/Agile ways-of-working. Anything that stimulates thinking.

It has the added benefit of increasing their knowledge base which can then be filtered through to the rest of the team.

There may be concerns (usually from stakeholders) that 10–15 minutes a day will have negative impacts on productivity.

Address these issues diplomatically by pointing out the benefits.
The team are not producing footballs in a factory.

If individuals feel that it impacts their productivity, it might be useful to dig a little deeper as this may mask time-management issues.

Promote learning and experimentation in the QE space
It’s important that teams are populated by diverse skill-sets and experience.

The QE function is ever evolving.

New ideas, new tools, new patterns, new methodologies are a constant.

Allow the team to collaborate with those inside and outside of their skill-set to ingest new ideas and approaches.

Promote lunch and learns / brown bag sessions / lightning talks as a means to communicate the output of these sessions.

Allow the team to experiment based on the output of these sessions.

Every day should be a school-day.

Promote learning in the domain
Being experienced in a domain is a double-edged sword.

On the plus side, the combined knowledge and experience can result in a near instantaneous idea of how the ‘thing’ can be tested.

On the negative side, this combined knowledge and experience means that in the process of accumulation, bad habits and (possibly redundant) knowledge would have been picked up which can result in sub-optimal testing activities being undertaken.

This is known as front-loading.

It can be very useful to pair up less experienced team members in pair testing sessions with the less-experienced team member acting as a navigator.

Those less experienced can bring a fresh insight into the domain under test.

Business As Usual

Gain support and trust from stakeholders
None of the methods outlined have ever worked (for me) without support from stakeholders.

It is up to you, as a leader, to articulate and promote the benefits of these methods to these stakeholders.

For example; Some employers will feel unease at allowing off-site meetings.

Anything away from the console / IDE is not ‘real’ work.

In my experience, this appears to be the norm in organisations that have little to no trust in their employees, usually identified by the use of antiquated, outmoded time-tracking processes.

If numbers are all that matters, then you and your team will be well on the way to becoming a number.

There are options available.

You can stay and attempt to persuade and educate or you can leave and find an organisation that understands the business benefits of trusting employees.

Don’t micromanage
Micromanagement is a management style that attempts to excessively control the work of people in the team.

No team member has ever said ‘I’m such a better team member for having Jim scrutinise each and every decision I make in my day-to-day work’
Don’t do it.

You are building a team that you trust to make decisions given the best information they have at the time.
It is a guaranteed way to destroy hard-won trust.
Don’t do it.

You are building a team that you would like to think independently.
Micromanagement is a guaranteed way to introduce paralysis by process. Don’t do it.

If the working day is spent peering over the shoulders of the team attempting to verify each element of their work, it will leave you room for nothing else, a guaranteed way to burnout.
For the team, you absolutely have to allow the team to breathe and decompress.
Don’t do it.

You are building a team that thrives on ownership.
It is a guaranteed way to stifle that ownership.
Don’t do it.

Be aware of how much time is spent controlling members of the team.
You should be constantly evaluating your approach and interactions.
If in doubt, ask the team.
They are best placed to tell you if they are feeling micromanaged.
Act on their comments.

Consistent overwork is not a virtue
Don’t confuse commitment and ambition with overwork.

There will be times when a degree of stretch from the team may be expected.
Burning platform, critical defect found the afternoon of an evening release, a client that has decided A===C and not A===B.

Don’t allow it to become the norm.

Allow the team to self-police in this respect.

Maintain an awareness of who is doing what hours.

Some members of the team may require protecting from themselves.

Pointless meetings
Promote the law of two-feet for both meetings organised by yourself and meetings organised outside of your team.

Pointless meetings are regularly in the top concerns of any list of employee gripes.

Show your team what *good looks like.

Provide context and/or an agenda for meeting invites. Give them a reason to attend.

Book the at the beginning or end of the day if you can.

If you work within an Agile framework, make the events and ceremonies count.

Coach your team to facilitate useful meetings.

Take breaks
Don’t allow the team to be a slave to the console or the whims of others outside their team.

If they feel fatigued, they should take a break.

Get some air.

Go for a walk.

Take their lunch.

They shouldn’t need to ask permission, they aren’t in school.

Encourage other team members to do the same.

Mental health issues as a result of burnout aren’t bumper-stickers or slogans.

Left unchecked it can have serious repercussions, both for the team and more importantly, the individual.

Take leave
Regular leave is essential to take stock and recharge.

Institute a no-email, no phone-call, no app-on-phone policy outside of work.

Promote the use of a ‘marching-order’ email sent ahead of leave that contains just enough information to allow colleagues to understand the what and when of their current workload.

Don’t use email or messaging as a substitute for active F2F communication
Where possible, leave your desk and talk to the person.

The rise of hybrid and remote working has made this much harder to accomplish.

Harder, not impossible.

Be respectful of interrupting that person if they have their head down on a problem or a status of ‘Do Not Disturb’.

Make a mental note or create a sticky-note to talk to them later if required.

Don’t just type out a fire-and-forget message or email.

When messaging or emailing, if the first line is Not-Urgent! the first line of that message will display on the recipient’s machine as a notification and when they glance at it (as they inevitably will) the distraction from their task at hand will hopefully be minimised.

Look out for each other
The team should help each other.

They should learn to recognise the normal behaviour of their peers.

Stress the need to be proactive.

They should take time out to talk about their day and actively listen in turn.

If team members are concerned about a colleague they should attempt to discuss this with them and if necessary, escalate.

Buddy up
Create a buddy system.

The aim is to involve the new starters in the team ways-of-working and team culture.

As per the team make-up, you will have a mixture of personalities.

Allow the team to define their buddies but be aware that ‘like’ will often gravitate to ‘like’.

In the case of strong personalities this usually leads to dynamic, but potentially, explosive conversations.

In the case of the shy, retiring types this could lead to very little in the way of useful outcomes.

A more useful approach is to match opposites.

It is also useful to mix up the pairings over time.

Mixing up the pairings will expose team members to different styles, opinions and knowledge.

The final benefit is that it enhances the individual growth as each type has to adapt their style to effectively communicate with their peers.

Walk the walk
Be a role model to your team members and practice what you preach.

Be vulnerable, no-one thinks you will have all the answers.

Team members will appreciate the effort.

Like it or not, your position carries the weight of implied authority.

People don’t expect you to be a paragon of virtue, they do have a valid expectation that you respect and acknowledge the privileged position you are in.

Socialisation

Encourage social gatherings (In-person and remote)
The team socialising outside the confines of a work environment has the benefit of lowering barriers that exist in the workplace.

This allows for a more relaxed environment in which issues can be discussed without fear of misinterpretation by non-team members who may not be privy to the underlying history or background.

For hybrid or remote teams, a no-strings video call inside and outside of working hours can be useful.

Attend social gatherings (In-person)
You may find that reticent individuals will open up due to a change in environment during off-site get-togethers.

As a leader you must attempt to approach these conversations with an open-mind, more often than not you will acquire information about individuals that may help in your interactions with them in the workplace.

Conversely, team members will also gain information about you.

However, don’t force work based conversation, if you are alert and present, you will gain knowledge on specific behaviours regardless of the topic of discussion.

Get to know the team
A good team lead will understand the meaning in being able to ‘read the room’.

Make time to get to know your team on a personal level.

This approach will vary between individuals.

Understanding the team on an individual level allows a lead to sense when tensions arise / interactions are fraught in a group setting.

They can read the room.

It also has the advantage of being able to step in early to head off potential misunderstandings or conflict.

The ability to read the emotions of others is linked to ‘social intelligence’ which, in turn, is linked to performance on team-based problem solving tasks.

Allow the team to get to know each other
Relationships are established via regular interaction, both positive and negative.

Healthy friction is a sign of a maturing team.

Foster break-out sessions or informal get-togethers.

A late Friday afternoon decompression session where work talk is off-limits can bond and benefit the team immensely.

Don’t feel slighted if the team decides to run a session without you.
This is not about you.

“If in doubt, just be kind”

Create career path(s)
The aim is to retain personnel.

The aim is motivate your team to be the best of themselves.

A structured path for career advancement is an invaluable tool in making people want to stay with the organisation.

Replacing personnel is very expensive.

A clear and achievable career path should be articulated to the team.

There will be occasions where individuals fall short of a particular milestone.

This is to be expected.

How it is addressed is key.

As individuals reach a particular milestone they should be rewarded.

It’s worth bearing in mind that not everyone has aspirations to be a leader, different people have different motivations.

Continuous motivation
Once an initial team has been formed the goal is to ensure that the team continuously improves.

An awareness of what motivates people will help, people are motivated by:

• Achievement
• Feeling valued
• Ambition
• Mastery
• Empowerment
• Incentives
• Salary
• Helping others

There is no ‘one size fits all’.

Nurturing a safe, supportive and inclusive environment is key.

All too often I’ve experienced the ‘Continuous improvement’ mantra that, on closer inspection, amounts to nothing more than empty words, unfulfilled promises and box-ticking.

Don’t become part of that particular problem.

Finding out what motivates people is the first step, their goals can then be tailored towards this motivation.

This information is very useful when discussions with the team occur as you will have an overview of individual expectations which will inform the overall team outlook.

People naturally grow in person and their career.

Don’t be an obstacle to this growth.

Conclusion

Building a team is not an all-or-nothing exercise.

Gathering the people is relatively simple.

Creating the conditions that engender teamwork and trust is more complex and takes time.

The methods outlined above will work but they have to be applied within the context of the organisation you are building the team within.

If in doubt, just be kind.

It takes time and real effort.

There will be highs and lows.

People are, on the whole, intelligent and caring.

Treat them as such.

They are subconsciously aware of face-value efforts and will react accordingly.

Be true to yourself and understand that not everything will go to plan.

Be prepared to back your team.

Some may question the value of these methods versus ‘real work’ .

If you quantify ‘real work’ as sitting at a console for hours on end churning out slabs of code or writing tedious test scripts then this post isn’t for you.

I would posit that forming well-rounded relationships amongst peers will return far more value in developing quality software than any amount of solo effort.

The benefits to an organisation in high-performing teams cannot be understated, yet somehow they frequently are.

Pre space-Karen you could find me on twitter (X) where I posted presumed nuggets of hard-won QE wisdom and upset some self-styled ‘thought leaders’ in their clichéd echo-chambers.