I recently ran a testing workshop with my team, which included people from different areas of the business and each working in lots of different roles. Around half of the attendees did not work in tech, but instead were experts in the domain in which our tech operates.

I had two main points I wanted to get across to them:

1. Testing and quality is everyone’s responsibility.
2. Every single person in this call brings something different and valuable to our testing approach.

The first point was one that was already quite embedded into the culture of the team: we work in a highly regulated industry, so quality is taken seriously by everyone. The second point is the one that I would argue is more important to get across.

If all people involved in testing were the same, test activities would bring much less value to a product. You would become more susceptible to issues like the Pesticide Paradox, where repeating the same tests over and over again eventually finds no new defects. Having a diverse group of people involved in the design of tests, means you are likely to design more new and unique test scenarios, improving quality assurance for your product.

For an analogy, let’s look at groups of superheroes like The Avengers or The Justice League. Each member of those teams brings a different superpower to the group, and together those teams are able to achieve things they never could on their own. Testing teams (and honestly just teams in general) are much the same – they benefit from diversity, and having people bring their unique superpowers to the process.

Anyone can be involved and bring value to testing activities, and this is what I mean by having a diverse team. People with different roles, experience levels, genders, races, backgrounds etc. all have value to bring to testing., and should each be celebrated for their individuality and differences. In addition to testers and developers, testing can involve:

• End users – and a diverse set of them!
• Domain Experts.
• Business Analysts.
• Other testing specialists, such as accessibility testers.
• AI tools.

Testing is most powerful when those doing the testing each bring their own perspectives and knowledge, and when those people are also aware of the value that they bring.

Imposter syndrome is rife in the tech sector, particularly in testing roles. Testers are often challenged heavily on their opinions and findings by other team members, regularly having their findings questions or being told ‘well it works on my machine’. So when going through testing activities, it can be easy for those involved to lose sight of the value they bring and lose confidence in their abilities.

Having the opportunity to reiterate that testing and those who participate in it are valuable can do a lot to boost team morale and provide those doing testing with a much needed confidence boost and the motivation they need to perform at their best. And thats what I wanted to achieve in this workshop. Even superheroes need a thank you!

In summary, testing works best when it involves a diverse, empowered and appreciated set of people.