Quality work is invisible
'Tested features' doesn't convey that you prevented a $500K production incident.
For QA professionals who want to be more than 'the bug finder'
You ship quality. But your resume says 'wrote test cases.'
Stop being an afterthought. Start being essential.
- Frame quality work as risk reduction and speed enablement
- Position for SDET, Automation Lead, or Quality Manager roles
- Show engineering depth, not just test execution
Get My QA-to-SDET Roadmap
For QA Engineers, SDETs, and Test Automation specialists.
Only 4 QA career acceleration spots this month
21 days
Average time to first interview
$47K
Average salary increase negotiated
89%
Land offers within 60 days
Steve J. Ngoumnai
Founder, Head Career Coach
The problem
Nobody celebrates when things don't break
That's the QA curse. Let's fix it.
QA feels like a second class citizen
You're not 'just testing.' You're engineering quality. But not everyone sees it.
Is there a career path?
You wonder if QA leads anywhere or if you need to switch to 'real' engineering.
Sound familiar?
The QA job search reality
These are the conversations we have every day with QA professionals just like you.
"I found the bug, but the developer got the credit"
You caught the critical issue before release. The developer fixed it and got thanked in the all-hands. You got... another ticket in your queue.
"My automation saves hours but nobody cares"
You built a framework that runs 2,000 tests in 20 minutes. Before you, it was manual and took a week. But 'maintained test automation' doesn't exactly pop on a resume.
"I'm treated as an afterthought"
You're pulled into projects at the last minute, asked to 'just run some tests' before launch, and never invited to architecture discussions. Quality is everyone's job — until it's time to give credit.
"I don't know if I should become a developer"
Everyone says QA is a stepping stone to 'real' engineering. But you like quality work. You're just not sure if it's a career or a career detour.
"My resume sounds like a test plan"
'Wrote test cases, executed test plans, reported defects.' Even you're bored reading it. Where's the strategy? The problem-solving? The engineering?
"I'm underpaid compared to developers"
You write code. You debug systems. You solve complex problems. But somehow 'QA' means 30% less salary than 'SWE' for similar work.
If any of this sounds like you — you're not alone, and you're not stuck. We've helped QA professionals reframe their work and land SDET, lead, and management roles.
Success Stories
People who made the leap
from 147+ professionals
Raymond B.
Senior Software Engineer · Google
"I'd been stuck at L5 for three years. After six weeks with Askia, I had three onsites and closed at L6 with a $350K package. The system design prep alone was worth it—I walked in..."
Sasha L.
Product Engineer · Meta
"Before Askia, I was getting ghosted after every phone screen. We rewrote my resume to lead with impact, and within two weeks I had five recruiter calls scheduled. The difference..."
Neil R.
Software Engineer · Amazon
"I was ready to accept their first offer—I had no idea how to negotiate without seeming greedy. We mapped out my leverage, practiced the exact script, and I ended up $45K higher..."
Alina K.
Senior Product Manager · Microsoft
"My background was all over the place—B2B, B2C, different industries. Askia helped me find the throughline that made it all make sense. Three interviewers said I was the most..."
Jordan T.
Data Scientist · Netflix
"I had five years of scattered projects and no clear story. After one session, we turned it into a narrative about driving decisions with data. The feedback in interviews went from..."
Priya S.
Product Designer · Apple
"The portfolio review was honest—almost too honest. But we cut three projects and rebuilt my walkthrough from scratch. When I presented it, the hiring manager said it was the..."
Miguel A.
Staff Engineer · Stripe
"I was applying to 40+ jobs a week with maybe one callback. We stopped the spray-and-pray approach, built an outreach system, and within a month I had warm intros to three of my..."
Tara J.
Growth PM · Airbnb
"My response rate went from 8% to 22% after repositioning my LinkedIn headline and summary. Same experience, totally different framing. Recruiters started reaching out for roles I..."
Kevin D.
Frontend Engineer · Shopify
"Four months of silence on LinkedIn. Then we overhauled my profile and resume together—within a week I had my first inbound message from a recruiter at a company I'd been eyeing...."
Rina M.
Solutions Architect · Salesforce
"I kept getting rejected for leadership roles because I sounded too technical. Askia helped me reframe everything around strategic impact. The hiring manager later told me my..."
Evan P.
Design Manager · Adobe
"I'd ramble for five minutes on every behavioral question. After three mock sessions, I had tight two-minute stories with clear structure. The interviewers started nodding along..."
Camila V.
Product Analyst · Uber
"I was offered a lateral move initially. After we built my case for promotion—concrete metrics, leadership examples, market data—I countered and got the senior title with a $38K..."
Omar H.
Platform Engineer · Spotify
"Cold outreach was getting me nowhere—maybe one reply for every 50 messages. Askia gave me a template that actually worked. Three weeks later, I had coffee chats with engineers at..."
Lena Q.
Product Designer · Figma
"I'd failed three final rounds in a row and was starting to think something was fundamentally wrong with me. After six mock interviews with Askia, I understood exactly where I was..."
Miles S.
Backend Engineer · Notion
"I was burning out applying to everything. Askia helped me build a system—targeted companies, warm outreach, weekly check-ins. It felt sustainable for the first time. Landed an..."
Isabelle C.
Engineering Manager · Atlassian
"Transitioning from IC to manager felt impossible—I kept getting passed over. Askia helped me articulate my leadership impact in a way that made sense to hiring committees. Within..."
Noah G.
Developer Advocate · GitHub
"My answers were all over the place—five minutes on something that needed thirty seconds. Askia gave me a framework: setup, action, result, reflection. Now every story has punch...."
Hannah W.
Customer Success Lead · Slack
"I was interviewing at six companies simultaneously and losing track of everything. Askia helped me prioritize, prep smarter, and close the one I actually wanted. Turned three..."
Diego R.
Security Engineer · Zoom
"I'd never negotiated before and was terrified of losing the offer. We role-played the conversation three times until I felt bulletproof. Asked for $35K more than they offered. They..."
Maya N.
Technical Program Manager · Oracle
"The resume rewrite made me realize I'd been underselling myself for years. We quantified everything—scope, team size, business impact. Recruiters started reaching out for roles I'd..."
Vikram P.
Machine Learning Engineer · NVIDIA
"I kept getting stuck explaining technical details instead of business outcomes. Askia taught me to lead with the 'so what'—revenue impact, time saved, decisions enabled. The shift..."
Lauren D.
Product Manager · LinkedIn
"I was getting callbacks but bombing final rounds. Turns out I was answering questions like an IC, not a PM. After three sessions focused on strategic framing, I went 3-for-3 on..."
Arjun S.
Backend Engineer · Snowflake
"System design interviews terrified me. Askia broke it down into a repeatable framework—requirements, estimation, architecture, trade-offs. Practiced it until it felt natural...."
Chloe H.
Data Analyst · Pinterest
"Everyone kept telling me I needed more experience to break into tech. Askia showed me how to position my non-tech background as an asset—different perspectives, fresh thinking. Got..."
Marcus J.
DevOps Engineer · Databricks
"My resume was a wall of tools and technologies. Askia helped me rewrite it around reliability outcomes—uptime improved, incidents reduced, deployments accelerated. Started getting..."
Sofia R.
Mobile Engineer · DoorDash
"I'd wing it in behavioral interviews and hope for the best. Askia made me build a story bank—eight polished examples I could adapt to any question. Now I walk in knowing exactly..."
Amir K.
Product Designer · Dropbox
"My portfolio was a random collection of projects. Askia helped me curate it around a clear theme—systems thinking and user advocacy. The hiring manager said it was the most..."
Grace T.
Analytics Lead · Intuit
"I was great at SQL but terrible at explaining why my analysis mattered. Askia taught me to frame everything as business decisions enabled. Now I lead with impact, and executives..."
Diego M.
FinTech Engineer · PayPal
"I had no idea what I was worth. Askia pulled comp data, helped me set a target, and coached me through the conversation. Ended up $40K above my initial expectation with better..."
Riya V.
Growth Engineer · Coinbase
"I was applying everywhere and getting nowhere. Askia made me pick 15 target companies, research them properly, and tailor my approach. Closed two offers from that list within six..."
Raymond B.
Senior Software Engineer · Google
"I'd been stuck at L5 for three years. After six weeks with Askia, I had three onsites and closed at L6 with a $350K package. The system design prep alone was worth it—I walked in..."
Sasha L.
Product Engineer · Meta
"Before Askia, I was getting ghosted after every phone screen. We rewrote my resume to lead with impact, and within two weeks I had five recruiter calls scheduled. The difference..."
Neil R.
Software Engineer · Amazon
"I was ready to accept their first offer—I had no idea how to negotiate without seeming greedy. We mapped out my leverage, practiced the exact script, and I ended up $45K higher..."
Alina K.
Senior Product Manager · Microsoft
"My background was all over the place—B2B, B2C, different industries. Askia helped me find the throughline that made it all make sense. Three interviewers said I was the most..."
Jordan T.
Data Scientist · Netflix
"I had five years of scattered projects and no clear story. After one session, we turned it into a narrative about driving decisions with data. The feedback in interviews went from..."
Priya S.
Product Designer · Apple
"The portfolio review was honest—almost too honest. But we cut three projects and rebuilt my walkthrough from scratch. When I presented it, the hiring manager said it was the..."
Miguel A.
Staff Engineer · Stripe
"I was applying to 40+ jobs a week with maybe one callback. We stopped the spray-and-pray approach, built an outreach system, and within a month I had warm intros to three of my..."
Tara J.
Growth PM · Airbnb
"My response rate went from 8% to 22% after repositioning my LinkedIn headline and summary. Same experience, totally different framing. Recruiters started reaching out for roles I..."
Kevin D.
Frontend Engineer · Shopify
"Four months of silence on LinkedIn. Then we overhauled my profile and resume together—within a week I had my first inbound message from a recruiter at a company I'd been eyeing...."
Rina M.
Solutions Architect · Salesforce
"I kept getting rejected for leadership roles because I sounded too technical. Askia helped me reframe everything around strategic impact. The hiring manager later told me my..."
Evan P.
Design Manager · Adobe
"I'd ramble for five minutes on every behavioral question. After three mock sessions, I had tight two-minute stories with clear structure. The interviewers started nodding along..."
Camila V.
Product Analyst · Uber
"I was offered a lateral move initially. After we built my case for promotion—concrete metrics, leadership examples, market data—I countered and got the senior title with a $38K..."
Omar H.
Platform Engineer · Spotify
"Cold outreach was getting me nowhere—maybe one reply for every 50 messages. Askia gave me a template that actually worked. Three weeks later, I had coffee chats with engineers at..."
Lena Q.
Product Designer · Figma
"I'd failed three final rounds in a row and was starting to think something was fundamentally wrong with me. After six mock interviews with Askia, I understood exactly where I was..."
Miles S.
Backend Engineer · Notion
"I was burning out applying to everything. Askia helped me build a system—targeted companies, warm outreach, weekly check-ins. It felt sustainable for the first time. Landed an..."
Isabelle C.
Engineering Manager · Atlassian
"Transitioning from IC to manager felt impossible—I kept getting passed over. Askia helped me articulate my leadership impact in a way that made sense to hiring committees. Within..."
Noah G.
Developer Advocate · GitHub
"My answers were all over the place—five minutes on something that needed thirty seconds. Askia gave me a framework: setup, action, result, reflection. Now every story has punch...."
Hannah W.
Customer Success Lead · Slack
"I was interviewing at six companies simultaneously and losing track of everything. Askia helped me prioritize, prep smarter, and close the one I actually wanted. Turned three..."
Diego R.
Security Engineer · Zoom
"I'd never negotiated before and was terrified of losing the offer. We role-played the conversation three times until I felt bulletproof. Asked for $35K more than they offered. They..."
Maya N.
Technical Program Manager · Oracle
"The resume rewrite made me realize I'd been underselling myself for years. We quantified everything—scope, team size, business impact. Recruiters started reaching out for roles I'd..."
Vikram P.
Machine Learning Engineer · NVIDIA
"I kept getting stuck explaining technical details instead of business outcomes. Askia taught me to lead with the 'so what'—revenue impact, time saved, decisions enabled. The shift..."
Lauren D.
Product Manager · LinkedIn
"I was getting callbacks but bombing final rounds. Turns out I was answering questions like an IC, not a PM. After three sessions focused on strategic framing, I went 3-for-3 on..."
Arjun S.
Backend Engineer · Snowflake
"System design interviews terrified me. Askia broke it down into a repeatable framework—requirements, estimation, architecture, trade-offs. Practiced it until it felt natural...."
Chloe H.
Data Analyst · Pinterest
"Everyone kept telling me I needed more experience to break into tech. Askia showed me how to position my non-tech background as an asset—different perspectives, fresh thinking. Got..."
Marcus J.
DevOps Engineer · Databricks
"My resume was a wall of tools and technologies. Askia helped me rewrite it around reliability outcomes—uptime improved, incidents reduced, deployments accelerated. Started getting..."
Sofia R.
Mobile Engineer · DoorDash
"I'd wing it in behavioral interviews and hope for the best. Askia made me build a story bank—eight polished examples I could adapt to any question. Now I walk in knowing exactly..."
Amir K.
Product Designer · Dropbox
"My portfolio was a random collection of projects. Askia helped me curate it around a clear theme—systems thinking and user advocacy. The hiring manager said it was the most..."
Grace T.
Analytics Lead · Intuit
"I was great at SQL but terrible at explaining why my analysis mattered. Askia taught me to frame everything as business decisions enabled. Now I lead with impact, and executives..."
Diego M.
FinTech Engineer · PayPal
"I had no idea what I was worth. Askia pulled comp data, helped me set a target, and coached me through the conversation. Ended up $40K above my initial expectation with better..."
Riya V.
Growth Engineer · Coinbase
"I was applying everywhere and getting nowhere. Askia made me pick 15 target companies, research them properly, and tailor my approach. Closed two offers from that list within six..."
Ready to accelerate your career?
Book a free strategy call and leave with a clear action plan.
How It Works
How we get you there
1
Find your impact
We quantify bugs caught, time saved, and release velocity improvements.
2
Build your story
Resume and LinkedIn rebuilt to show quality engineering, not just test execution.
3
Land the role
Interview prep for SDET, lead, and management positions.
Deliverables
What you actually get
Quality-focused career support.
Impact Mapping
Quantify your quality contributions.
Engineering Story
Resume and LinkedIn that show engineering, not testing.
Interview Prep
SDET and leadership interview readiness.
Your Coach
Steve values quality engineers
QA and test automation are often undervalued in interviews. I help quality engineers reframe their work as risk management and velocity enablement. You're not just finding bugs — you're protecting the business.
30+ QA leads coached
SDET+ level-ups
$42K avg. comp increase
This is for you if
You've done real quality work and want real recognition.
- Your resume sounds like a test plan
- You want to move into SDET or lead roles
- You've built automation but can't show the value
- You're ready for management
This probably isn't for you if
We work with experienced QA professionals.
- You're just learning test fundamentals
- You want automation coding training
- You're looking for ISTQB prep
Questions QA pros usually ask
Real talk.
How do I quantify bug prevention?
We estimate what those bugs would have cost in production — user impact, engineering time, and business consequences. A critical bug caught before release might have caused hours of downtime, thousands in lost revenue, or weeks of customer churn. That's your impact.
Is SDET really considered engineering?
Absolutely. You're writing code, designing test architecture, solving complex debugging problems. At top companies, SDETs earn the same as SWEs because they recognize it's equivalent work. We help you frame your work as the engineering it truly is.
Can I transition from QA to software engineering?
Many do successfully. Your testing experience is actually an asset — you understand edge cases, defensive coding, and system reliability better than developers who've never tested. We help you position this experience as a strength, not a limitation.
How do I get out of manual testing and into automation?
Start by identifying repetitive tests you could automate. Learn a framework (Selenium, Cypress, Playwright). But more importantly, frame the business case: 'I automated X tests, saving Y hours per sprint.' We help you build a portfolio that demonstrates automation engineering skills.
Is QA management a real career path?
Quality Engineering Manager, Director of QA, VP of Quality — these are senior roles at every major company. The path requires combining technical credibility with strategic thinking about quality processes. We help you develop and demonstrate both.
How do I compete against candidates from bigger companies?
Candidates from FAANG QA teams had bigger budgets and more established processes. If you've built quality practices from scratch at a smaller company, that's actually harder and more valuable. We help you frame scrappiness as leadership.
Should I get ISTQB or other certifications?
Certifications help early in your career but become less important at senior levels. What matters more is demonstrable impact: tests automated, bugs prevented, release velocity improved. We help you focus on what actually gets you hired.
How do I talk about my work without sounding like I just found bugs?
We shift your narrative from 'found X bugs' to 'prevented $X in production incidents' and from 'wrote test cases' to 'designed quality strategy that enabled weekly releases.' It's the same work, framed as business value.
Why am I paid less than developers doing similar work?
Market perception, unfortunately. But SDET roles at top companies pay equally to SWE roles. The key is positioning: if your resume reads 'QA tester,' you get QA salaries. If it reads 'Quality Engineer' with demonstrated automation and architecture skills, you get engineering compensation.
How do I handle 'shift left' when developers do their own testing?
Shift left doesn't eliminate QA — it elevates it. Developers do unit tests; you own integration, E2E, performance, and quality strategy. Position yourself as the quality architect who designs the testing approach, not just the person who executes tests.
"Within 3 weeks I had 4 interviews lined up. Steve completely changed how I talk about my work."
★★★★★ — Marcus T., Senior Engineer → Staff at FAANGQuality is engineering. Let's prove it.
Book a call. Let's figure out how to show your real impact.
Join 147+ professionals who've accelerated their careers
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