Description
While the other characteristics talk about expectations and behaviors that are independent of your domain or role, mastery is specifically about becoming a better software engineer, agile coach, technical product owner, QE, QA or TA. There are items marked for each of these disciplines. Anything that isn’t marked is expected of all roles.
Milestone 1
Individual Step
At this step, you are focused primarily on being a useful contributor, gaining experience and learning how to be effective on their team. It is not expected that a member of technology would remain at this step during their entire time at Spotify. At this step, your focus should be on growing so that you can support your team. This is the only step where there is an expectation that all members of technology should move toward the next step.
| Examples | |
|---|---|
| Can solve small-medium sized problems independently; can understand and contribute to solving larger problems | Understands the high level architecture of the stuff they work on |
Specific to Quality
| Examples | |
|---|---|
| Plan and perform tests and report back findings to the squad | Increases visibility of Quality efforts through existing channels |
| Brings up quality concerns in squad discussions | Develops automated tests with guidance from members of the team |
Milestone 2
Squad/Chapter Step
At this step, you are a resource for your chapter or your squad, either as a domain specialist for your team, or as a generalist/problem solver for them. You should be able to lead smaller efforts coordinating with other members of your team and drive them to completion and/or dig into tough problems and solve them independently taking in feedback from your peers and focusing on the outcome.
| Examples | ||
|---|---|---|
| Designs, documents and implements reliable, testable, and elegant solutions to problems | Could be a squad-level expert in a particular domain or squad-level go-to person for solving a particular set of problems | Understands and can clearly explain the high level architecture and design of their team's systems |
Specific to Quality
| Examples | |
|---|---|
| Independently creates test strategies or plans, performs and reports test results and insights to team and stakeholders. | Drives the team to think about the consumers of what the team delivers. |
| Code reviews developer tests and gives feedback. | Can devise complex GUI-, acceptance, or integration tests to validate team features. |
| Can work closely with QE to supplement developer unit testing with additional tests or tools. |
Milestone 3
Tribe/Guild Step
At this step, you have an impact across squads or chapters. You are a resource for a larger group as a domain expert or generalist. You will lead cross-team (squad/tribe/chapter) efforts involving more people and drive them to completion and/or you will take on large challenges, working with diverse stakeholders in multiple teams to solve a problem that affects your larger organization.
| Examples | |
|---|---|
| Finds ways to spread learning across the organization (gives internal talks, blogs, etc) | Contributes to the vision and long-term strategy In their domain of expertise |
| Mentors their peers to avoid antipatterns such as "not invented here" type solutions | Can RM or take a technical leadership role on larger cross-functional quad or tribe efforts |
| Tribe-level expert in a particular area or tribe-level go-to person for solving problems in their domain of expertise |
Specific to Quality
| Examples | |
|---|---|
| Introduces new tools and ways of working with quality. | Teaches closest...teams/tribes in effective work with quality. |
| Develops GU-, acceptance-, or integration tests that validate functioning across multiple components. | Work with developers to mentor them on writing more testable code and better tests. |
| Works with Quality team members to decrease feedback loop between tests and build execution. |
Milestone 4
Technology/Company Step
At this step, your focus is significantly on supporting Tech-wide or company-wide initiatives. You will Road Manage projects that span tribes and be responsible for solving Tech-wide problems, and/or you will also represent Tech in company and/or industry forums, and/or you will be a go-to person across the company to solve very complex problems
| Examples | |
|---|---|
| Drives or facilitates organizational change | Gives talks at industry events, and/or publishes research papers, and/or publishes company white-papers and/or may be a Spotify representative in industry groups or committees |
| Company-level expert in a particular area or go-to person for solving problems in their domain expertise for all of Tech | Actively educate the rest of the Technology organization in their areas of knowledge |
Milestone 5
N/A within the Spotify Career Steps Framework
Configuration Health
- ✅ Associated with 1 role
- ⚠️ Has been referenced in no observations
- ℹ️ No one has achieved a milestone on this ability
- ⛔️ Last updated: almost 5 years ago
- ℹ️ Never conversed about
Role & Position Requirements
- Quality Assurance Engineersmust be milestone 1+
Examples / Observations
An observation relating to Quality Mastery has not been publicly recognized yet.
Conversations about Quality Mastery
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