ITCoffeeBeans

My name is Çiya Tabar Dimen, and I’ve been a committed QA Engineer for more than a decade. In 2014, a temporary job opportunity came knocking: “Turkish native speakers with language skills needed for freelance work in Barcelona.” I accepted without hesitation. After four months in this role, I was curious to see where it would lead.
My first task involved transcribing audio recordings – I received technical guidelines from US colleagues at the office about proper formatting.

Coffee breaks

There were around fifteen Turkish native freelancers like me working eight-hour shifts transcribing audio recordings. But our team wasn’t just colleagues from Turkey – I remember Dutch, Brazilian teammates doing identical work. Those coffee breaks saved me: the multicultural small talks and laughter recharged me for another round of monotonous audio transcription.

Professional leap towards QA

After my first temporary task in Barcelona, I was offered to work as a QA Localization Tester in Madrid.

I had absolutely no idea what the role involved, but my manager assured me not to worry. “We’ll give you the fundamentals to start,” he said, “You’ll learn the rest on the job through experience.” So I thought myself, Why not?

QA work captivated me from the very beginning, especially initial times working at LocTeam on Apple’s project in 2016. It was something amazing: extraordinary collaborations with 30 to 40 colleagues from across the globe: Brazil, Norway, Mexico, France, Switzerland, Germany, Finland, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Turkey, Russia, and more. Gaining experience on a job that I’ve never heard of it before, using multiple tools to get results like, different mindsets, way of workings. Now when I look back, it was a great opportunity.

This is the exact point where the QA career truly began. As I rewind further, I see how time flies like an arrow (though as the saying goes, “fruit flies like a banana”). I’m never quite sure whether I’m the fly, the banana, or the arrow in this metaphor.

But here I stand, believing it is the moment to elevate my work experience into another dimension.

Why ITCoffeeBeans?

I have worked not only with functional and automated testing, but also on quality implementation. That’s why, I’m deeply interested in efficiency at work, striving to address quality as thoroughly as possible while minimizing redundant workload. My focus goes beyond tools; I also prioritize effective working methodologies.

I consider myself a creative, witty, and easygoing person who thrives on exploring new paths. What excites me most is sharing what I’ve learned, that’s to say, not just professionally, but through human connections. In today’s globalized world, there are wonderful opportunities to both give and receive more in that sense. 

I’m very curious person and I’d love a helicopter view on how other projects or implementations are going across different companies. Each time I collaborate within a company, I see different methodologies and ways of working: all striving for efficiency in such different ways.  Different  attitudes as a team work keep my enthusiasm alive. All these discussions across companies, mindsets ,and methodologies are key reasons that push me to share knowledge further.

Lastly, I hope you join ITCoffeBeans’ blog at some point, where we can discuss a variety of topics to build a collaborative community spirit together.