He knew NOTHING about the IT industry and changed to a tester from an industry related industry. Tomek is an example of a person who perfectly planned every step and thanks to the support of a mentor, partners in change (i.e. us ;-)) and loved ones, his change had to end with a positive result. Fasten your seat belts and read for yourself!
Dookoła Pracy: Tomek, you are one of the people we supported during the transition to Software Tester. You have been very proactive and have planned the process perfectly. Today, we’d like to talk about the lessons and thoughts from the transition process and your current role.
Tomek Zajączkowski: Thank you very much for your interest in me. It seems to me that we have planned the whole process very well and, above all, effectively, because from today (July 2022) I am already a tester after a trial period with a contract for an indefinite period
DP: Why did you decide to change the industry and choose the Software Tester?
Tomek: In my previous work, there was a wall that I was unable to get through on my own. Sounds trivial? Well, no. I was surrounded by super coworkers, I was given ambitious and responsible tasks, and I was appreciated financially. However, among all my tasks, one concerned customer support at the maintenance stage. I had problems already from production, while I was more and more interested in what was happening with the product, even before it was handed over to the customer. In addition, I was able to empathize 1:1 with the role of the customer on the other side, I understood his bitterness very well, and at the same time I did not understand why the product could not be better. And so today I am talking to you as an embedded tester, which has an impact on the quality of the product released.
DP: If you had to say what 3 things helped you the most in changing your industry, what would it be?
Tomek: 1. A conscious decision (which took about 4 months) and after this decision not a half step back.
2. Good plan. In my case, the mind map, which was still “alive” and was corrected, worked very well. To this should be added the awareness of wideness during the entire process. To tell yourself that the change of industry will take 3 months is to hurt yourself from the very beginning.
3. Support on various levels: my wife, who encouraged me from the beginning to the end, your suggestions regarding the next steps and potential mistakes to be avoided, and the support of a mentor with many years of experience. This is the perfect combination and recipe for success.
DP: In our “Changing the Industry in 5 Steps” program, we mention that the second step in this process is to get a mentor who will be a partner in change, inspiration for us on the one hand, and on the other hand will tell us what the specifics of working in a given industry are. Tell me, did you have a mentor and what value did he bring to the changeover process?
Tomek: Yes, in my case it was Dariusz Dresden. I found Dariusz on a Facebook group, where he made it clear that he would take the willing under his wing. Dariusz was not the only one in the mentor database, so I approached the topic unconventionally. After a short research (yes, the tester must be able to look for information on the Internet, everything is given on a plate), it turned out that we have common interests and I thought that how should we communicate and pilot my progress, why not take care of an interesting off-topic. After a short exchange of messages, Dariusz noticed that I had already taken my first steps on my own and we would not start from scratch. We set an action plan, a pipeline, to initially stick to the deadlines and we were not interested in the dry theory, but in the practical application of the already acquired skills.
DP: Changing profession is a process that requires regularity and appropriate scheduling. Tell us how you prepared yourself to acquire substantive knowledge
(e.g. the tools you used).
Tomek: In my case, a mind map turned out to be necessary. Without it, I would have failed because I had too many ideas and too many approaches to the whole process. There are a lot of such web tools. In my case it was Coggle (the free version is completely sufficient). An additional stimulus for systematic action was the kanban board. Here a well-known favorite – Trello. The very preparation of what I want to know and what I need to know consisted in meticulously reviewing job offers. In this way, I knew what was required of testers and I immediately knew what was to land on the mind map and on the board in Trello.
DP: Tomek, browsing through job offers and analyzing his strengths, weaknesses and gaps to be filled is also a step (step 1) in our “Change the Industry in 5 Steps” program. It’s great that you mention it!
Step 4, on the other hand, is putting knowledge into practice to enter a new industry. How did you look for the first assignments/projects, thanks to which you gained the necessary experience?
Tomek: I do not hide that I had a little downhill here, because in my previous job I was one of the Beta testers of a large desktop application. That was something. But this did not yet guarantee me a response from recruiters. I added uTest – a standard path to first contact with more serious tests. From the moment I decided to become a tester, I also became a hunter of any anomalies in the ordinary, everyday browsing of the Internet. In this way, I found at least a few bugs, described them in accordance with the adopted rules and, contrary to appearances, I met with positive feedback from the addressees. Most importantly, I created my portfolio on GitHub before I started creating resumes and sending applications. You ask why a portfolio tester on GitHub? For example, to immortalize all the bugs encountered so far and reported. In this way, I also respected the time of recruiters, and at the same time I cultivated my regularity.
DP: At a certain stage of transition, you need a CV. This is usually a chronological resume. In the case of transition, it is much more beneficial to present your experience and skills as part of a functional CV, which we have also offered to you. Why was it a better solution from your perspective and how did it affect the response from companies?
Tomek: I honestly admit that to this day I am electrified by the phenomenon of functional CV. Proof? The response to the chronological CV was zero. No one is interested in the education of a person who changes their profession and applies for Junior. At the time of creating a functional CV (in English, of course), out of 17 applications sent, I received 7 recruitment invitations, and then 2 job offers. That’s all within a month. I am convinced that recruiters looked at me better in this way, because they got a handful of facts about me at the very beginning of the CV. I have additionally bolded the more interesting skills and achievements, without losing the neatness of the entire document.
DP: Tomek’s golden advice for people who are thinking about changing their industry is…
Tomek: Oh, let’s have a few.
- Find mentors! Technical and process.
- Be proactive and curious about what you do. It helps.
- If you don’t like learning, consider switching to another profession.
- Be aware that the changeover process is a tedious and long process. Mine lasted 8 months (sic!)
- Take care of rest and do not lead to overwork. It demotivates.
- There will definitely be a moment when you doubt (I had 2 such moments). Don’t let this thought dominate you. Get some rest.
- Only look for specific information on the Internet – avoid scrolling popular newsgroups, at least at this stage. Believe me.
- Completing the course does not make you a tester.
- Having an ISTQB certificate does not make you a tester.
- Keep improving your English – remember that you are not only surrounded by native people, no one will judge you, do not be afraid to speak English. You won’t miss it at the interview.