Training and testing

Training and testing

I've written before that the best form of training follows this process: Tell them what you're going to do, tell them what you're doing, tell them what you did.

When working with your software company to report bugs or other issues, you should follow a similar process:

  1. Tell them what you were trying to do. For example, "I'm trying to process a membership order."
  2. Tell them how you did it. For example, "Here are the steps I followed." Be as explicit as possible and include screenshots!
  3. Tell them what happened. Show the results of your steps (again, including screenshots).

We've all heard "a picture is worth 1,000 words." I mentioned screenshots twice above for that very reason. Screenshots often communicate more than any narrative can.

"The membership join process doesn't work" is reporting a bug, but it's almost useless in terms of helping the software company figure out your problem. But following the process above will clearly communicate the issue and bring a resolution much more quickly.

Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives

Are you sure it doesn’t do that?

December 4, 2019

Are you sure it doesn’t do that? Even after 20 years of consulting, I’m surprised […]

Be grateful

November 27, 2019

Be grateful As Thanksgiving approaches here in the US, I’m reminded of two words: Be […]

Do you really need to approve them?

November 20, 2019

Do you really need to approve them? I often joke that the very best (because […]

Negativity bias is why we need database PR

November 13, 2019

Negativity bias is why we need database PR I’ve written before how cognitive biases can affect […]

A system change requires a culture change

November 6, 2019

A system change requires a culture change By its very nature, when you introduce a […]

Where is that data?

October 30, 2019

Where is that data? This is what data management nirvana looks like: When the question starts with […]

Be deliberate, but act quickly

October 23, 2019

Be deliberate, but act quickly Be deliberate, but act quickly. These are my words of […]

Why associations don’t like the “S” word

October 16, 2019

Why associations don’t like the “S” word A couple of weeks ago I asked my […]

The “S” stands for “Standard”

October 9, 2019

The “S” stands for “Standard” In a conversation with a past client, we were discussing […]

Is that meaningless data?

September 25, 2019

Is that meaningless data? I’m not a big quotes guy, but one of the few […]

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top