Gary Gagnon

In layperson terms, what do you actually do at work?

Testing software is the root of my job, which has been for 20+ years. Now as a director the role has shifted to creating strong teams that are empowered to solve problems and improve the system constantly

When did you get your first Big Break? How did you get it? How did it go?

In my first job out of college, I applied to be a developer at a small startup, but I didn't have the experience they needed, but the lead developer introduced me to the VP who saw I had the potential to understand complex issues and asked if I would like to start out in technical support. I ended up staying and over the next 9 years I becoming the manager of technical support. That VP taught me the importance of being a mentor and pushing your employees.

What is the one piece of career advice you wish someone gave you when you were younger?

Great question. I would have to say that your opinion matters. Do not be afraid to voice concern, excitement, or support for the ideas of others and present your ideas to them. Dont get your feelings hurt if they don't like your ideas, be professional and ask for guidance on their conclusions. It's all about learning from others.

How did you start building your network?

One person at a time. Join organizations that deal with your profession. User groups, conferences, schools, etc are great places to meet people in your profession. Engage and participate and people will talk with you. A great line to use when you have some rapport with another professional is to say "Hey would it be alright if I contacted you for advice from time to time, I'd be happy to do the same for you. " swap contact info and stay in touch from time to time, even when you don't have questions.

What is the biggest challenge you had to overcome to get to where you are now professionally? How did you overcome it?

The biggest thing I had to overcome was my own "me, me me" attitude. Once I started becoming a servant leader and put others first, my career skyrocketed because I worked with and hired people that were often time smarter than me. Giving them the freedom to come up with solutions instead of telling them how to do their job made my teams efficient, motivated and they excelled at their job.

What is the most useful piece of career advice you got as a student, and who gave it to you?

In my freshman year in college I had to take a Basic programming class (yes I'm that old). It was also the first class that I would use the school's computer systems so I needed that knowledge to be able to do my more advanced classes. The teacher asked all the students on the first day what experience we had. I rattled through all I had already done which included setting the computers up at our high school. He asked why I was even taking the class but then said. no wait, I'm just going to challenge you. so while the rest of the class worked on the fundamentals of basic he gave me an assignment of building a checkbook application. He said never coast, challenge yourself and it stuck with me all these years.

What is it like when your job gets tough?

In Sofware Quality Assurance the job gets tough primarily in two scenarios. One when deadlines are looming and two when critical production issues come up. The deadlines can be nerve-wracking and can cause a lot of very long days near the release date. I've had to do that both as a tester and as a manager. If your team has to work overtime you better be there with them. Nothing worse than a boss that says "You need to work overtime, see you Monday" Production issues are bad for two reasons. first, they inconvenience the customer, sometimes they are more than inconveniences. like double billing or charging fees that shouldn't be charged. It also means your team missed that issue in testing which means not only do you need to get it fixed but also find out how it got through in the first place. Accept the fact that it was missed, find the reason, and fix it. make sure that you let others know how you plan to mitigate in the future. Quality assurance has to establish trust with the developers and product owners. They need to feel confident you are doing all you can do to make their product as bug-free as possible. owning up to mistakes and showing how you are going to fix it int he future are keys to that trust.

How did you pick your career? Did you know all along?

I went to school originally to be a developer on mainframe systems. I tried to find a summer job coding but could not find one but I had one developer see something in me and he got me started in technical support, which I did for 12 years, working up through mid level management. So my profession sort of found me. I later chose to change my career over to Quality Assurance because it fit my skill set better. I've always been one to try and figure out why something broke and seeing issues. QA is built on finding issues with things nobody else can see. So in the end. Do what makes you happy and what your natural abilities lead you to. If you have a passion for animals look into veterinary or conservation jobs, if you like explaining stuff, become a teacher. I know it sounds obvious, but you should never do something you don't have a passion for.