6

DISCLAIMER: I could not resist not to ask this question, although I know there is no single, objective answer. Please, delete it or turn it into community wiki.

As a potential employer, how would you respond to a cover letter with a list of genuine bugs found in his /her site or product?

This is just to present sample of applicant's skills (in bug hunting) by analogy to portfolio of

  • photographs, when applying to a photography school / media agency
  • open source projects, when applying for a developer job
  • etc.
2
  • 1
    You mention devs use open source projects - note that open source projects also need testers. Plenty of opportunity there to show your skills Feb 15, 2012 at 15:34
  • 2
    More generally, it might be interesting to ask, "What would constitute a portfolio for a QA applicant?", or to put it another way, "Aside from talking about it, how can a QA applicant demonstrate their knowledge, experience, and skill?" You can find related questions at sqa.stackexchange.com/search?q=interview.
    – user246
    Feb 15, 2012 at 15:40

7 Answers 7

11

Some folks will admire your initiative and skill. Others may be annoyed, depending on whether the bugs you find relate to their day-to-day concerns.

In either case, unless you know what concerns plague the people who will receive your bug list, there's a chance that your testing will not relate closely to what's on their minds. If that happens, your approach may come off as a gimmick: Clever, but less helpful than you'd hoped.

1
  • 1
    +1 because now I understand the lesson from some tester book: "Test for the bugs that matter for those who matter" :-)
    – dzieciou
    Feb 15, 2012 at 6:28
10

I wouldn't include such bugs in a cover letter - to me that is the wrong medium.

Instead, I would have a list with me during the interview. And I would look for an opportunity to casually mentioned that you looked through the employer's web applications and noticed a few things, and would the interviewer like to discuss them...

As others have already mentioned, tread lightly here. You don't want to come off as accusing the interviewer of having done poor testing. Also, if you are just noticing flaws in a corporate website, often Marketing owns that website and it isn't ever tested by anyone QA.

Note that a few companies might respond well to your proposed approach. One appears to be Fog Creek. At least at one point in time, they seemed to want to attract the kind of no-experience tester that likes to point out flaws in their corporate website.

see: http://www.allthingsquality.com/2010/04/testers-and-developers-at-fog-creek.html

1
  • Interestingly, in one of job offers I found even request to send the way testing strategy proposal for part of employer product + bug report, if found.
    – dzieciou
    Apr 29, 2012 at 16:08
6

As an Employer, I would be looking for a Tester who sees themselves as more than a bug hunter. There may be employers who are looking are for bug hunters.

If you see yourself as just a "bug hunter" & the bugs you find are your trophies, then yes, there might be some mileage in providing evidence of the bugs you found.

This said, I wouldn't mention the actual bug, or the software it was found in - more I would indicate what the implications of the bugs found were, such as impact if they hadn't been found & how I delt with the bugs to resolution.

IMO, I don't see bugs as trophies, or something to brag about - to me they're just part of testing, of which there are far more interesting stories to tell & provide more insight to an employer about you as a Tester.

If you're after "a sample of applicant's skills", try something like this guy (I love this approach btw): http://www.daveliebreich.com/blog/?p=284

1
  • 1
    +1 for the link. I've learned that the task of the tester is beyond test design and bug finding. It's also about creating tools and datasets for devs, PMs, and other tests to verify bug fixes, and test some areas themselves. It's about doing it quickly, so with the right tools.
    – dzieciou
    Feb 19, 2012 at 17:54
4

To me it shows initiative and drive, and it shows that the candidate cares enough about our product to actually download it and try it out. I don't think that I would be suspicious of how he or she had access to my product, unless my product was not commercially available for some reason. It's really important that a candidate is passionate about their work.

4

As an interviewer when I review a CV I am looking for 2 things, technical ability but more importantly a sense that this person will fit in with the team. Simply giving me a list of bugs you have found on my system in your CV or cover note is unlikely to change my decision on whether or not I bring you in for an interview.

However if you are brought in for an interview, telling me you have identified bugs in my system tells You actually took the time to look at the company and product and took note of improvements or issues you found. It gives a smooth transition into talking about the company and why you want to join us how you think we would fit.

It also opens up a line of conversation about testing without relying on me asking a load of questions. It allows me to expand then on what you have found and move that into more general questions about testing.

However none of this would stop me asking my go to testing interview question. How would you test a lift (Elevator) :) There are many right answers to this, the one thing I never want to hear is, get in it and press the button :).

1
  • The second paragraph is brilliant. If your potential employer acts like that, it is a sign of healthy company culture.
    – monkrus
    Dec 7, 2021 at 23:05
3

I did this. I spent a week with my current employers products and produced a report of my findings. I did some digging around to find contact info and sent it to the Director of QA. I had no experience in the field but the effort landed me a job. I've been here almost two years.

I personally can't think of a better way to apply for a QA position than to have already successfully done the job. Obviously you'll need more than just this, but it certainly got my foot in the door.

0

As an employer I would be very suspicious about how you gained such specific information about what I would view as "insider knowledge" regarding the observed quality of the system under test.

That's my view anyway.

Steve.

1
  • 3
    Some products are publicly accessible, e.g., Web applications, and it is often enough to work some time with them to discover bugs.
    – dzieciou
    Feb 15, 2012 at 12:46

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.