I have heard testers lament about being managed by non-technical people who cannot tell the difference between a PC and a microwave oven (they both have windows, don't they?)! Managers believe in management, and we technical people believe in subtler, sophisticated, deep technology. The concept is simple. Then I was subjected to a harsh reality!

Many of us are taking part or will take part in the process of implementing a software testing methodology or process at our organization. The size of the organization notwithstanding, the success of this type of implementation depends largely on management and enterprise support. U.S. Bancorp, Minneapolis, MN, is currently involved in implementing a new software testing methodology throughout the enterprise. My role, as the methodology project lead, is to help existing testing groups conceptualize how the methodology should be applied to their existing work. This effort is accomplished through both training and hands-on mentoring. There are valuable lessons that I have learned about choosing a testing methodology and the training efforts that follow such an endeavor. I would like to share them with you.

Treating symptoms instead of the root cause of symptoms is a mistake that dates back millennia (just ask Socrates). The current-day workplace is no different. In Johanna Rothman's column, we get a glimpse at what happens when a company doesn't value its people.

Quite often in the world of software engineering, testers and Quality Assurance (QA) managers find themselves to be the "last hired" and the "first fired." In some IT shops, QA does not exist at all. In spite of this, recent years have brought major breakthroughs in the areas of software testing and quality assurance.