careers in test

Agile Tester

“Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a job where adaptability and collaboration ensure quick, high-quality releases? That’s the role of an Agile Tester.“

An Agile Tester works as part of an agile development team to ensure continuous testing and integration throughout the software delivery cycle. They embrace agile principles such as collaboration, adaptability, and rapid feedback to ensure product quality.

The role involves extensive participation in team ceremonies like daily stand-ups, sprint planning, and retrospectives, emphasizing the continuous delivery of value.

Knowledge Required
  • Agile methodologies (e.g., Scrum, Kanban)
  • Test-driven development (TDD) and behavior-driven development (BDD)
  • Collaboration and communication skills
  • Exploratory testing techniques
  • Automated testing in agile contexts
Skills Required
  • Test-Driven Development (TDD) and Behavior-Driven Development (BDD)
  • Collaboration within Cross-Functional Teams
  • Exploratory Testing Skills
  • Continuous Feedback and Improvement
  • Adapting to Rapid Change
Typical Responsibilities
  • Participating in agile ceremonies to provide testing insights
  • Creating and executing tests continuously throughout the sprint
  • Collaborating closely with developers to identify and fix defects
  • Maintaining a culture of rapid feedback and continuous improvement
  • Enhancing test automation coverage where applicable
Common Tools

JIRA, Confluence, TestRail, Selenium, Cucumber

Connect & Facilitate

This role overlaps with DevOps Testers, Test Automation Engineers, and Developers, focusing on continuous testing, automation, and team collaboration.

Rate Table (National Average)

Please note that rate averages will change slightly by state, and precision of practice can also influence rates (testing for avionics, medical, or safety equipment can require compliance with particularly rigorous government standards etc)

RemunerationValue
Daily Rate (contract)$700 – $900
FTE Salary (Permanent)$90,000 – $110,000

Project Hiring Cost (average)

These percentages are derived from an annualized amount. Given the costs involved in sourcing, vetting, and correspondence for a role of this type, a recruiter would expect a minimum fixed fee of 15K, although most recruiters operate on percentages nowadays.

Project Hiring CostValue
Internal HR15-20%
Recruiters25%
Interview Questions

Here are some interview questions you will most likely encounter for this role. While we don’t provide answers, we do clarify the intent behind the questions, which makes them a great resource when researching the role in readiness for an interview.

To understand integration of testing in Agile processes.

To evaluate teamwork and communication within Agile contexts.

To assess adaptability and focus in iterative development.

To gauge ability to adapt testing amid frequent updates.

To test strategies for maintaining quality under Agile pressures.

ATS Keyphrases

These keywords are commonly used by recruiter Application Tracking Systems to determine the relevance of a CV or cover letter to a specific position description. By ensuring at least a few of these key phrases appear throughout your CV and cover letter, you increase your relevance where an ATS is being used.

Agile Testing, Scrum, Kanban, Continuous Integration (CI), Continuous Delivery (CD), User Story Testing, Test-Driven Development (TDD), Behavior-Driven Development (BDD), Agile Ceremonies Participation, Exploratory Testing, Test Sprints, Acceptance Criteria Validation, Collaboration with Developers, Cross-Functional Teams, Agile Test Metrics, Automated Regression Testing, Backlog Refinement, Pair Testing, Acceptance Test-Driven Development (ATDD), Incremental Testing, Agile Test Strategy, Feedback Loops, Adaptability in Testing, Agile Test Automation, Sprint Retrospectives