Software testing is a relatively new discipline in IT industry. Many people have joined testing without formal training. However, everyone likes to make a difference in quality by contributing to software testing.

Software products are getting bigger in size and complexity day by day. At the same time, profit margins are under tremendous pressure due to increased competition. And hence testing function is becoming the focus of strategic importance in many organizations.

Test professionals are mostly involved with writing test cases, test execution and report preparation. With ever increasing competition, organizations are looking for efficient processes for optimize testing. Process knowledge and maturity is becoming part of core competency. In addition, formal test techniques are gaining higher acceptance as it creates better coverage, higher reuse and more predictable. Test tools are essential to achieve higher productivity.

Test professionals always encounter –“how to find critical bugs early and easily”. For quality decision making, one needs to have good information gathering skill from the vast collection of specifications, meetings and emails. Analysis, assimilation and abstraction are the key skills to arrive at good decisions.

In the test function, one has to deal with people from various groups; active listening is a potential skill for requirement clarification and understanding the user needs better. And it needs effective presentation and good oral/written communication skills to understand and meet expectations. Assertiveness skills are a great help to avoid quality risk during high time pressure. In addition, negotiation and appreciative enquiry skills do help in setting realistic expectations.

At times, testing activity can lead to a conflicting situation with other project groups. A lighthearted positive attitude helps in resolving the conflicts and opens many a closed doors. Stress and time management are the critical skills for enjoying the work and delivering in time. In the era of fast changing technology, new challenges arrive sooner than expected. Knowledge industry demands continuous learning to be of value to the organization. Test professional have to regularly sharpen their saws to keep up with the fast evolving domain and technology.

This paper tries to capture various aspects of testing in a holistic way. It identifies different dimensions of the testing role for higher effectiveness and provides insight in each of these aspects.