Job at a Testing Solution Company [closed]

Question

I have an option to join a company which is going to develop solutions to do load/stress testing . Its a startup and product is still under development . How do you think market for load/stress testing based product is now a days .

Answer 1

Here's my opinion. The market will suck. If you're getting paid with stock in the company I wouldn't bother. But if your getting paid in cash then go for it!

Most systems have a unique interface. So the load testing solution will essentially need to be a programming language to have the flexibility to fit a any unique system interface. We are already flooded with scripting languages.

Maybe your solution could simplify the ability to have many threads executing. Or it could have a visual recorder like AutoHotKey. But your still going to run into the fundamental problem of needing to be so flexible that you must become a programming language.

On top of that for certain types of loads you need physical hardware. A software solution will not suffice. Think of programs that scan data, rather than receive it as a load so to speak. You need jumbo hard drives full of data as your "load".

It's just too niche. Prove me wrong and you become rich!!!$$$

Answer 2

Your question has two parts, one general, one specific.

The specific question is about the demand for tools to perform load/stress testing.

The general question is how do you evaluate an invitation to join a company.

Load/Stress Testing

You can do your own survey about this using a search engine. You will want to be very specific about the approach, the application area, and the technology ecosystem and tool chain where it will be used. Stress test tools for a LAMP web site may have a lot of competition and high expectation among users that the tool will be open source. A stress test tool for a Windows Phone 7 SMS message protocol to synchronize and monitor the start and stop time for SAT testing as supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of education might be a great experience with a guaranteed revenue stream if the chief technical officer of the company wrote a patent protecting his IP.

Evaluating a Start Up or Small Company

If you are being asked to join a start up, ask a few questions:

• Does the team work well together?
• Is the team balanced to cover technology, selling, and managing/obtaining resources?
• Do you trust these people?
• Do you believe they can do what they say they want to do?
• Are you reacting to something they showed you, or to their enthusiasm?
• What role would you have?
• Is that the role you want?
• In that role, can you deliver what is expected?
• Is the role a good match to your skill set?
• Does the role fit into a road map you have (or might want) for your career?
• What are the likely rewards both tangible, intangible. Short term and long term?
• What sacrifices would you be asked to make?
• What is the opportunity cost for the things you would not do if you did this?

Years ago I interviewed for a start up. It was a cool place with tons of tools and they claimed to have bought all kinds of IP for an important sounding technology. I was just a few years out of school and they offered me chief (and at that point) only software engineer. I agonized a while and kind of decided I would not want to work for a company that had me as its chief software engineer and gave it a pass. It is not easy to know if it was the right choice, but I am pretty sure it was because I have had other great opportunities since then.

In contrast, a CTO at another company I know actually was part of a start up and worked twenty years or so instead of one of his other opportunities. The other opportunity? To be one of the first thirty guys at Qualcomm.