Commonly, software testing is a field which requires many skills. All these skills are related to the daily tasks. As a tester, the main job is to make the product better by both automation testing and manual testing. In my opinion, they are some important skills such as: technical skill, analytical skill, communication skill. I think that understanding some above these skills will explain more details about tester’s job.

First of all, the technical skill is one of important skills of a tester.  It is the ability on understanding customer requirement and automated test tools. To begin with, a test needs to have the ability on understanding customer requirement when handles the test requirement, find the bugs in manual test or even automation test. For example, if the testers start their task without knowledge on understanding the requirements, they will not able to determine if a program is functioning as designed and they will not be able to tell if required functionality is missing. Moreover, the ability of understanding on automated test tools is one necessary technical skill for a tester. Some companies are currently using automated test tool, a tester needs to effectively use this tool. If the tester is presently not using an automated tool, he/she could not do the task because lacking of the knowledge or experience about automated tool. Therefore, it is definitely an asset if a tester has basic or extensive knowledge of automated tool. A good tester must have significant technical skills in order to understand the system under test, communicate with developers, and write test automation effectively. In addition, technical skills can be learned through education or experience. For these reasons, I strongly believe that a tester must have technical skills.

Secondly, analytical skill is very important for any software tester. That means that any tester can require product knowledge, but analytical skills are a must. A tester must understand the processes of the computer software and should be able to analyze cause, watch each step of the program and detect the bug. Moreover, a tester needs to be able to logically break down a problem under constitution of application and create a test plan around that. Analytical skill is also the ability to analyze the document and find the bug and avoid missing bug. Furthermore, this skill helps tester analyze the kind of bugs depending upon each function and write the status report correctly. This skill really needs to become a good tester.

Finally, communication skill is one of certain skills of a tester. This skill is ability to communicate with management, developers, the other test team members and even the customers. A software tester should have strong written and verbal communication skills in order to report the results of the testing process effectively. For example, management may not be interested in the details of every defect that has been located. They are interested in the overall quality of a release and when the release can go in production. Another example, a tester must be able to communicate with technical staff such as developers to discuss requirements and ensure the system is fit for purpose. They do not appreciate it when you come up them asserting ( khang dinh, xac thuc) that they made a mistake. The mistake you are pointing out may actually be an inconsistency (su mau thuan)in the specifications( chi tiet chi dinh), or a change in the test environment. Moreover, communication skill helps testers on writing test plans, writing clear bug reports and also writing coherent status reports to management (both formal reports and ad hoc e-mail reports). Together with it, having the ability to listen critically and speak rationally in the meeting is also required for communication between team members or even client effectively. Thus, I can firmly point out that communication skills are particularly (dac biet) important for the success of the testing project.

In general, being a good tester requires a lot of specific skills like technical skill, analytical skill, communicating with teammates. By improving with these skills, works of a tester can be done smoothly and directly. Moreover, as a team member, a tester is not only improving his own with lots of skills, but also understanding business strategy, sharing experience and supporting his teammates. Tracing the perfection (ve ra su hoan hao) of a tester is impossible but a tester should have at least those skills which are listed above. Furthermore, having a passion for the job is a main factor to lead testers to success in their career.