At Eyes of Wonder, growth isn’t always about climbing higher – sometimes, it’s about changing direction entirely. Andrey’s journey is a perfect example of that shift: from responding to problems as a tech support specialist, to preventing them altogether as a QA engineer.

In tech support, he worked closely with the customers, troubleshooting issues as they happened.

Now in QA, Andrey combines his deep product knowledge with a technical mindset to make sure things run smoothly – before anyone even notices something could go wrong.

We sat down with him to reflect on the shift, the mindset changes, and what he carried over from tech support into QA ⚡️💻

What’s one bug you encountered while in support that made you think, “If I were an automation engineer, I’d write a test for this immediately”—and have you written that test yet?

There were more than one to be honest, so it is difficult to single out one. However, I did bring that list to the team lead, so they could address them promptly. So, we can say they were covered.

Switching from solving issues to preventing them is a big shift. How did your mindset have to change, and what was the hardest habit to break from your support days?

It is indeed a big change, because I needed to deep-dive into the intricacies of the service, which I didn't have a chance to do so, when I was a support agent. The hardest habit to break was the fact that I kept forgetting that I had more tools and broader access into the system, that would allow to troubleshoot problems more technically effective. I would start using the tools that I had been used to using, and they weren't enough to check an issue. However, when I became a QA, I could do deeper checks to pinpoint the cause.

Your job used to start after things went wrong. Now it begins before they do. How do you decide what’s worth automating and what’s better left tested manually?

It is a general rule that if something is repetitive, doesn't depend on many variables, that may change every day, and/or is already stable from the development point of view, then it can be automated to save time and effort.

Imagine a game update goes live and hundreds of players report a mysterious glitch. You’re now on the QA side – what would your first three steps be to investigate, and how would they differ from what you’d do in your support role?

Broader access into the system and deeper knowledge of how the system works are the key things that make my support troubleshoooting approach different from the QA one. I would start with speaking to the people who are engaged with customers reporting the issue to collect all the info related to the reported issue. Then I'd go and try to reproduce it myself. Depending on the outcome, I would refer to the developers. Basically, quite a regular QA flow.

What’s one thing about the support experience that makes you a better QA engineer than someone who’s never touched support? And do you think all QA engineers should spend some time there?

It is definitely understanding how the product works from the point of view of users. I worked with them closely and were aware of their complaints and requests to improve the service. It helps me suggest better improvements and offer a view that may be different from the one of devs or other QAs, who didn't have hands-on experience with customers.

About having prior customer support experience, it is a huge advantage, but not a must. You may definitely have a good head start compared to other QAs, your attitude, attention to details and diligence make you a pro QA at the end of the day.

Andrey’s path shows how support isn’t just a stepping stone – it’s a launchpad. By pairing hands-on user insight with technical curiosity, he transitioned into QA not by waiting, but by growing into the role through action.

At Eyes of Wonder, we believe potential isn’t something you find – it’s something you build. And sometimes, the best engineers are the ones who started by listening first.

🚀 Andrey didn’t have all the answers at the start. But he asked the right questions, stepped into new challenges, and carved out a new path. If you’re ready to grow by doing – your story could be next.

Let’s build it together!