💡Quality Insight: How to Ignite Quality Conversations

Every morning, I start my day by writing an async standup in the QA channel. Being the only QA in the organization, I try to make my post intriguing. It started with the updates on the weather, with a twist on what might happen during the day. Since a tree is being removed today, the weather report becomes “ ☀️ with a chance of 🌳 🪓”. Later on, I rolled in the “Today is…” reports. Thankfully, we live in an amazing world that will make a day out of almost anything. Learning what “today is” adds a little bit more spice to the update.

What really ignited the conversation in the QA channel was the crackers. My post looked like this…

The responses came rolling in. There was a vote for Goldfish (And a vote against. Apparently, they are bad for your teeth), Triscuits, the classic saltine, and of course, Ritz. I messaged my boss:

Well, I finally got conversations happening in the QA channel 😂

Being a voice for quality can be tricky. As the only QA, I don’t own quality (the entire engineering team does). But, as someone who works to keep quality top of mind, I don’t want to be the person who sounds naggy or frustrated.

Is it possible to do that without turning into someone who is boring or, god forbid, annoying?

Here are some practices that have helped me along the way.

Make it relevant

Every Thursday, I take time to read up on what’s happening in the QA community. This could be a video, a podcast, or an article I’ve saved throughout the week. We have a #dev-learnings channel where we can share what we’ve learned at any time. As I watch the video or read the article, I post in the channel what I’m learning and quotes that stand out to me. Not everyone joins in, but typically one or two people do. It creates the space for conversation around processes, new ideas, or flashes of insight.

Make it engaging

Circling back to my silly standup, what if I left out the weather report and the “Today is” events? I don’t know. Is there much to respond to if all someone sees is:

Okay, cool. That’s nice. And, more than likely, no one would respond. Yes, having the add-ons might be silly. Considering that now we are now having an entire conversation about crackers, I can safely bet that someone has read my boring update as well and still decided to share their opinion on their favorite.

Make it accessible

Have you seen testing content that you want everyone to engage with? Do a lunch and learn with your team! Watch the video together and encourage them to ask questions after the showing. Or, if you’ve recently returned from a QA conference, put together some slides on the sessions you participated in. This is a great way to practice public speaking and share your experience at the same time.

Make it normal

We don’t have to walk around being holier than thou about quality. Many times, I try to post and discuss what is new to me because if it’s fascinating, someone else might find it delightful as well. If talking about quality becomes the norm, without nagging or holding anything over anyone’s head, then people will be more likely to engage in conversation.

Be vulnerable

If I’ve missed something while testing, I fully own it. I inform the team what I forgot to do, provide a full status on the current project, and explain what I’m doing to avoid making the same mistake. If your team sees you willing to admit and own your mistakes, that creates an environment for everyone else to do the same.

Listen

Sometimes, the best thing you can do is not talk, but listen. In team meetings, listen to people’s pain points, where they struggle, what they are wondering about, or what gets them excited. As QA professionals, we have excellent resources we can offer our team. But, we can miss the mark if we don’t take the time to learn who are teammates are and what they need. Listen first. Offer later.

Talking about Quality doesn’t have to be dull or frustrating. Find ways to make it worthwhile. I’d love to know what works for you!

Till next time…

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Written with autumn station playing in the background