Ignacio is a Software Testing Specialist who has been working in the tech sector for over fourteen years. He teaches Manual QA at Careerist, and he provides students with plenty of industry knowledge, he advises them on the best practices in tech today, and he inspires people to start their own journey into the field.
How did you get into testing?
My journey started in 2007 when I went to university. A teacher offered me the chance to meet her and a group of people that were completing a QA testing internship, and I welcomed the opportunity with open arms.
We had a group meeting at the company - there were five of us. They explained to us what our role meant and they told us what it would be like to be a Quality Assurance Engineer.
I accepted the offer of starting a job there as a manual QA tester some time later. And a few years later I moved to the world of automation.
What companies have you worked for?
I have worked at various companies over the years.
So, I worked for an Argentinian software consultancy firm for the first four years after becoming a tester. Then I moved to Cordoba in Argentina, just in the middle of the country between Mendoza and Buenos Aires.
At that company I was a bug software consultant. When I joined the team as an automation QA engineer we were given a very important project for Adobe. The company had a lot of software, different tools and I mostly worked on Autodesk architectural software. I dealt with several other big and very interesting projects during my time there, a lot of it was to do with image rendering. At this post I was working with a great team, which was made up of a couple of guys.
It was another four years until I moved to work at Intel. Every time I changed my job I updated my LinkedIn profile, and that is how the Intel recruitment team contacted me. They sent me an email asking me to participate in their interview process, which was for a senior automation position. It was a very interesting opportunity because they had a lot of processes in place, and different software products to work with, so I accepted the offer. When I applied I went through five interviews. Everything went okay and I started my job there pretty soon after.
I was at Intel for two years, but about six months after I joined there was a vacancy for a management position, so I applied for that. I had a couple of interviews to go through, and after that I became a manager of a QA team.
I worked there for one and a half years. And I was in charge of administering tasks to my team, discussing issues with different teams and helping to meet QA needs. My responsibilities were to plan and execute, and to make sure that the execution plans made sense to all involved.
Family matters made me go back to Mendoza not long afterwards. So, I started working remotely for Eventbrite, an events company located in California, US. The role I had was that of an Automation QA Tester.
I was hired to do some bug run management, to manage tasks and responsibilities, and to work closely with my manager. I worked there for 4 years, and I gained a lot of experience as I worked with different teams and dealt with their needs.
Then, I joined FinTech, a company in Argentina, as a manager. I’m still working in this job now, and I am now leading a team of 25 people; developers and QAs.
I’m happy about the journey I’ve been on. And I’m glad to be teaching Manual QA at Careerist because I have the opportunity to share my knowledge with everyone.
What does your typical day at work look like?
Since I became a manager I have had a lot of meetings. About 60-70% of my day is spent in meetings because this is where I coordinate things, work with other areas, and discuss problems with teams. This is something that you should be made aware of, if you plan on becoming a manager, because this type of work does not suit everyone.
A huge proportion of my time is dedicated to looking into ways of making teams work better, so that they improve their performance at work.
I feel that it’s important for me to be close to the people I work with, so that I can make sure that I understand their needs. I spend a lot of time tracking objectives too, and I make sure that my team is on the right path, and that they have everything they need to complete the objectives that have been set.
I guess that’s what every manager should do.
Dedication and hard work has helped you to become a manager. And educating and guiding people to achieve their goals is truly your passion. Thanks for sharing your inspiring story with us!
