The improper use of terminology in the Quality Assurance industry is rampant. I was recently asked when QA terms would be standardized across all companies. The truth is that the standardization is already out there just waiting for companies and individuals to learn and adopt the proper words and definitions. The largest group of offenders is Quality Assurance professionals who have been in the business for a long time. Many feel like they have been using the proper terminology for years and they may not even realize that they learned it wrong in the beginning. No matter what “modified” software development lifecycle you adopted the terminology stays the same. Companies allow the use of terms like “use cases” to be used incorrectly with the reasoning, “The team knows what that means here in our environment.”

The problem with allowing this to continue is that it degrades the organization’s ability to speak intelligently about their quality practices to other QA professionals. Anytime your QA team speaks to outside representatives, be that other test teams or even new employees, the words they use must be industry standard or you risk loosing respect in your quality as an organization.

Think about it: How does your company define “use cases” or “test plan”? Ask a friend or co-worker the same question. Do they match? Now download the latest glossary from the American Software Testing Qualifications Board and check your answers. What did you find?

Job seekers please note: Many companies are beginning to test professionals on their industry knowledge prior to hiring for quality assurance positions. Not knowing the standardized definition for a specific test term can potentially lose you a great job.  Taking a certification course can help you discover what you have been missing and give you an edge in your next interview.