A testing learning platform will help Sii’s experts successfully develop their competences
Testing Services Competency Center operating within Sii has implemented a testing learning platform for all company workers dealing with software testing. Created by testers for testers, the repository contains courses to help learn about the most-needed tools, popular frameworks, and programming languages. All training materials are based on the applications created at Sii. Sebastian Terepko, Test Development Engineer at Sii and the project leader talks about the initiative.
Where did the idea for the testing learning platform come from?
Sebastian Terepko, Test Development Engineer at Sii: The idea to create a place where you can get solid knowledge about testing is a response to the current situation in the testing world, which is changing dynamically. Nowadays, testers must have much more knowledge of tools, technology, and software engineering. Until recently, most of the tests were carried out manually, using GUI applications. Currently, manual testers are required to know the tools and technologies that optimize tests performance, such as SoapUI or Postman. Also, test automation plays an increasingly important role in the entire software development process. Without it, delivering software at the pace required by the business becomes impossible. Thanks to test automation, we reduce the time needed for testing, sometimes from a few days to a few hours, while reducing the costs. We want our employees to develop in this direction, which is why we decided to create a platform that will help them acquire new skills and fit into the current market realities better.
Who is the platform targeted at?
S.T.: The platform contains applications, courses, and information about tools currently implemented and used in testing, which may be useful for both manual and automation testers. When changing the project, we often work with new technologies or tools that we have not dealt with so far. There are also situations when we just need to recall some information. Our platform is the perfect place for both.
What can we find there?
S.T.: Mainly there will be trainings on the most-needed tools in testing, popular frameworks, and programming languages that we use working for clients. At the very beginning, we created courses related to API (Postman, SoapUI). API testing skills are currently the most useful and that’s what we decided to start with. To meet current trends, we also added tools and courses in the DevOps area, which is more and more interesting for testers. Docker + Kubernetes and Jenkins trainings were created. All available training materials are based on the applications created by us – online stores, performance testing platforms, and specific learning environments for various frameworks, such as Cypress or Robot Framework. We want to teach based on specific examples, which is why we provide students with all the tools and frameworks. All necessary resources are located on our servers, so we have control over what we provide to the end-user and the freedom to expand our training offer.
There are many training platforms on the market. Why yours is different?
S.T.: Our platform is created by testers for testers. Tool descriptions, tutorials, and courses are strictly adapted to the testers’ expectations. We touch on topics that from their perspective are the most important. This approach allows the transfer of knowledge best suited to specific tasks – the trainee does not waste time on obtaining information that is unnecessary at a given moment and can prepare faster for work on specific projects or for the upcoming technical test.
We have many trainings that help to better understand what the tester does. A good specialist should know why and how a given application works, which is why we have created a series of courses that includes trainings in the basics of HTML, JS, and CSS. This approach results in improved test quality.
We also create content for automation testers. One of the more innovative things is the training in Selenium Advance, which was conducted as a simulation of the project. Participants were divided into groups that were to work as a team on entrusted tasks.
What are the plans related to platform development?
S.T.: We will provide new materials. We try to be up to date with the latest technologies, and thus we must constantly develop, create new courses and update those already available. We plan to separate specific areas in testing and create course packages covering specific topics so that users can quickly find all available trainings in the area they are interested in, e.g. testing mobile applications.
Now the platform is only available to employees of the Testing Services Competency Center and other Sii employees dealing with testing, but we plan to make it available to testers outside the company – we want to popularize knowledge about tests and give others access to expert materials in this area. Also, participants of the “Become a tester” training organized by Sii will have access to the platform in the future.
Want to learn more about software testing at Sii? Visit the Test Services Competence Center website. If you want to join us, check the current job offers.
