Dusting of the cobwebs – transitioning from Test Manager to Test Engineer

Firstly, I hope everyone is staying safe and sane in these extraordinary times. It has been a while since my last blog, and I thought I would share my thoughts and feelings on a change that I have needed to undertake due to the dreaded COVID19 virus

Context is king…

To give some context to this blog the main story I would like to tell is how I recently have started on a path to transition from my role as Test Manager/Test Coach to undertaking a Test Engineer role to support the organisation I work for. Spoilers: this is not a happy clappy narrative but is more of an honest, personal view of how this change has / is affecting me, and how I am affecting the change! A potted history. I started in testing in 2007 as a Test Analyst. I spent 7 years being hands on through various test positions until 2014 where I started my test leadership career. I have subsequently spent the next 6 years in various Test Manager / Coach roles and really immensely enjoyed learning the skills I was able to grow. I was comfortable but constantly kept pushing myself further along the career path … and then along came COVID 19……

Ch ch ch changes..

In March it became apparent that all forms of our daily lives would be impacted by COVID19. From a testing perspective, the change affected me thus. In order to support the organisation I work for there was a need for me to changes roles for a short/medium term from Test Manager to a Test Engineer – becoming more hands on, going from providing coaching and leadership to our testers in numerous squads to focussing and being part of a squad. My first thoughts were along the lines of “Great! we all need to roll our sleeves and do our bit” and “I’ve been a hands-on tester before, it will be good to shake of the cobwebs “. Which I have to say are thoughts I still stand by.
However if I were then to go on and continue this narrative and say things like “It was like getting back on a bike” and I “hit the ground running” amongst other unhelpful clichés , then I would be lying!
Quite simply I had completely underestimated how much my mindset had changed as a Test Manager since I had left a full time hands on tester role. Perhaps I was a tad arrogant thinking I could slip back into this with ease? Spoilers : Yes is the answer.

Shock to the Test Manager system

Upon starting my new role within our fantastic Digital App Squad, I realised that – strangely enough! – testing has moved on massively since I was last ‘hands on’. This has been one the first lessons I have learned. Being in a Test Leadership/Coaching role and being aware of the current landscape is a different experience than being hands on in a team.
In my first few weeks I have learned about our app release process, from using firebase to download the latest branches of code to test, through to understanding how our test environments need to be configured. It has been an enjoyable but steep learning curve – especially when as a Test Manager you have become used to your test leads doing this 😊

As it became apparent my mindset had blinded me from the task in hand, I started to feel:

• A sense of shock – at not being able to immediately recall skills like test design I took for granted those years ago took
• I felt surprisingly out of my comfort zone
• Occasional feeling of helplessness – why is it taking me so longer to understand “the basics”
• Ultimately the old friend imposter syndrome came visiting - causing me to ask the familiar question “Was I EVER actually good enough”

Perspective is Queen

If context is King, then perspective most certainly is Queen. I realised that I needed to tackle this by gaining a different perspective.
My first port of call was talk about my challenges. I am lucky enough to have some fantastic test and tech people in my network, and I have learned that not talking about these types of challenges does not help anyone . So I approached my network for 1-2-1 discussion and also shared my thoughts on social media. This was massively helpful – never underestimate the power of speaking to people to gain a new slant on things.
I then started to realise

• It is ok not to be ok. This was a human reaction to change, and that it is not abnormal to feel this way (guess what – apparently other people go through this, so you are not alone). The act of recognising this point is in itself a coping mechanism.
• As a Test Manager being asked to undertake something I have not done for several years would take time! I was only putting pressure on myself (something I have always personally been guilty off)
• The need to focus on the simple things first. I fell back on what I knew and more importantly believed in. I defined a simple but effective set of acceptance tests. Immediately I started to feel at ease.
• The fact I was now a Test Engineer did not mean I could ignore my skills and knowledge obtained from my Test Management experiences. Why not bring in Test Planning, Risk Based Testing and Non-Functional Test awareness into this role?
• Be Brave. Ask the questions, ask for help, what is the worst that could happen?

After a number of weeks into the role and now acclimatising to my new responsibilities (who know that moving a JIRA ticket to a ‘Test Complete’ lane could be oh so sweet!!) I felt this was a good time to share my in-progress journey.

My learning

I like to end every blog explaining from my story I have shared, what learnings I have made

• Being comfortable in our roles in not a bad thing – not at all. However, we could become trapped / lulled into a false sense of security if we do not revisit the roles that made us what we are today.
• A Change of roles, whether it is due to circumstances or something we pursue can be both scary and rewarding. Both of those emotions are natural – we are only human.
• The fact you have performed a role previously does not automatically mean you can switch that skillset on. You must not take your earlier self for granted. Take the time occasionally to keep yourself refreshed on what made you.
• The views from a full time Test Manager / Test Coach are different from a Test Engineer. Both are vitally important in test delivery, but both require a different mindset. My failure here was to almost unintentionally disrespect the role I was going into by thinking I could easily pick it up.
• This change in role and having to ‘re-invent’ myself will serve me well and keep me relevant in the testing world hopefully! I would encourage everyone to look back at previous roles and question could they do that role now? You may be surprised at the answer!