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InfoQ Homepage News The Journey of Going Back to Testing after Being a Testing Manager

The Journey of Going Back to Testing after Being a Testing Manager

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Returning to testing after having become a test manager can be challenging. For Julia María Durán Muñoz it meant finding a company that appreciated her experience and recognized her desire and ability to do technical work. It can help to get training to update your knowledge, refresh your technical skills, and practice your skills before starting interviews.

Durán Muñoz presented her journey of returning to her origins as a tester after being a testing manager at the Romanian Testing Conference 2022.

Durán Muñoz started her professional career as a programmer for a company in Madrid. She got into testing by chance, when a position for a tester appeared in her hometown.

With testing she discovered her passion:

I was the only tester and over time more people joined the team, whom I trained. I ended up leading the testing team that reached 65 people and growing.

She decided to return to start working as a tester again after being a test manager, aware that the work she did was more related to managing people and dealing with the client than to testing:

Although I like managing teams and helping people grow, I felt I had a lot of ideas to put into practice working on a more technical profile.

Knowing that the world of testing had changed, Durán Muñoz knew she had to catch up. She did training to update her knowledge in testing and recover her programming skills to be able to perform tasks related to test automation. She listened to what others were doing- those who worked doing the tasks that she aspired to do after the transition. She also participated as a tester in some of the projects that she was leading to gain experience.

She expected some challenges getting back in a technical position given her age. It turned out that it wasn’t about her age, but rather about finding a company that really appreciated the experience she had, and her ability and desire to return to a technical profile.

Recovering her knowledge of testing and her programming skills turned out to be difficult for her, but she managed:

It has been a matter of working hard and seeking support from people who had the knowledge, experience and could guide me.

InfoQ interviewed Julia María Durán Muñoz about her journey going back to testing.

InfoQ: What did you learn while being a test manager?

Julia María Durán Muñoz: One of the main things I learned as a testing manager was how to deal with the people on my team and with clients. I learned how important it was for the people on your team to be happy so that the results are as expected.

I also learned the importance of listening and the difference in results obtained depending on how you communicate things. The manager has to be an example and be able to transmit the passion for a job well done.

InfoQ: How did people respond in interviews regarding switching from a manager to a technical position?

Durán Muñoz: I got all kinds of reactions: from suspicion and thinking that it would be something temporary and that after a while I would want to be a manager again, to those who shared my point of view, agreeing with me that they are two different professional careers and applauding me for being brave enough to look for a job change that would make me happier.

InfoQ: What is your current job like?

Durán Muñoz: I’m very happy. I find myself in a continuous learning environment, which was what I was looking for, in which I can experiment and propose new things. I’m surrounded by colleagues from whom I learn a lot every day. I’m very excited and highly motivated.

InfoQ: What’s your advice to people who would like to find a senior technical position?

Durán Muñoz: Go for it! We really spend many hours a day dedicated to something that does not make us happy. I’m here for anyone who wants to make the change and may need help or guidance in the process.

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