Ajay Balamurugadas

Member for

16 years 10 months

Ajay Balamurugadas, goes by the handle ‘ajay184f’ in the testing community and is continuously re-inventing his testing methodology. He co-founded Weekend Testing – a worldwide movement for skilled testing, authored multiple books available at bit.ly/booksaj and bit.ly/ajleanpub. His friends associate the terms – ‘Change Agent, Idea Man, Motivational’ to him. He tweets and loves to have long conversations on software testing and life in general. He is currently working at GSPANN Technologies, Inc. as Senior Director – QE. When not testing, he spends time with his wife and two children.

Company

GSPANN Technologies

Job Function

Quality Assurance

Job Title

Sr. Director - QE

Industry

Other

Interests

Agile

DevOps

Leadership

Mobile

Process Improvement

Project Management

Requirements/Business Analysis

Test Automation

Testing/QA

Software Testing

Country

India

Ajay Balamurugadas

Ajay Balamurugadas, goes by the handle ‘ajay184f’ in the testing community and is continuously re-inventing his testing methodology. He co-founded Weekend Testing - a worldwide movement for skilled testing, authored six small books under the theme "What If" downloadable at his blog http://EnjoyTesting.blogspot.com. His latest book is available at www.leanpub.com/50mistakes. His friends associate the terms - 'Change Agent, Idea Man, Motivational' to him. He tweets under @ajay184f and loves to have long conversations on software testing and life in general.

All Articles by Ajay Balamurugadas

All Stories by Ajay Balamurugadas

	The Hidden Costs of AutomationWhile automation can help you save time and money in your testing activities, there are a few hidden costs that many teams overlook. Aspects that don't have a price tag initially—such as what it will take to learn, adopt, and maintain a new automation tool—will end up costing you in the long run. Think through these considerations and answer some questions before jumping into your automation initiative.
	6 Ways Testers Can Add Value (Other Than Functional Testing)Many testers spend their time doing functional testing and don't come out of this cocoon. But software testing is all about discovering quality-related information to assist stakeholders in making informed decisions, and there are multiple ways to discover information in addition to functional testing. Here are six actions that will help you add more value to your projects.
	3 Testing Practices We Should All StopTesting evolves, and it becomes clear that some concepts we’re all used to doing are no longer applicable today. It’s important to periodically take stock of our testing practices and cull the ones that no longer make sense—or are downright harmful. Here are three common testing practices it’s in our best interests to stop doing.
	3 Methods for Better Communication and More Effective TestingSuccessful delivery of software requires the entire team, so it’s imperative that everyone choose their words carefully so they convey what they really mean, are sensitive to others’ feelings, and consider all aspects of a problem. Here are three questions to remember when communicating about your software testing projects to ensure you’re considering the power of words.
	Problem-Solving in Software Testing: A ConversationHow many times have you started to solve a particular problem and realized midway that the actual problem is not what you thought it was? Ajay Balamurugadas relates a conversation he had with a colleague in software testing about issues with test cases, and the lessons he learned from that problem-solving process. Here's what you should consider.
	Tales of Test Automation Failure (and How to Find Success)Adopting test automation in your test plan is more challenging than it may initially appear. Understanding these challenges can help QA teams recognize some common mistakes and set a better, more realistic plan for their next attempt at automation. Read these three cautionary tales so you can avoid them on your path to automation success.