Recently I shared a form in the Software Testing community to ask inputs on what people wanted to learn in Software Testing. There were some great responses, and one of them asked about the questioning method and techniques for building our knowledge about the product. Software Testing profession is getting more and more technical. Also, it’s pertinent for the engineers to be industry and business savvy in addition to being tech-savvy. And hence, questioning plays a major role in exploring and learning about the product.
The questioning method, in this context, is not easy. When a Software Testing professional builds their knowledge on a product, they build a mental map (not to be confused with Mind Maps, although they are useful in certain ways) of the product. I found this article using the Question Ladder method, although it misses to cover it fully — the columns (would, might, could, etc.) which lead to revealing insights are missing.
Although the above method is useful, question words should not be limited to just who, what, where, when, why, and how, as suggested in that article. A list and combinations of question words in English is quite exhaustive and can be used as an aid in a tester’s analysis toolbox. The questions to ask should really be driven by the context. The effectiveness of the question words used and their application to the product learning context entirely depends on the competence of the professional. And it comes by experience and by building expertise working over different varieties of products in various situations.
I am tempted to give an example for questioning in this blog, but it would not be correct to write it. I would rather make a detailed video in my YouTube channel sometime. Subscribe and stay put!
If you would like inputs or coaching on effective questioning methods to build test strategy for your product in your organisation, feel free to setup an initial free consultation with me. Happy Testing!
