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Chinese Idiom Stories for Software Professionals: #7 Be There just to Make Up the Number (滥竽充数)
Expose the fakers quickly.
This article is one of the “Chinese Idiom Stories for Software Professionals” series.
Story
In ancient China, King QiXuan loved to listen to the Yu (an ancient musical instrument, a bit like a Flute), especially in the ensemble. In the palace, there was a band of 300 Yu players. The King often ordered this band to play for him.
A man named NanGuo could not play the Yu. But when he learned of the King’s hobby, he volunteered his service and bragged about how well he could play. He asked for permission to play for the King with other players. King QiXuan granted his request.
Thereupon, in each performance, he would mingle with others, pretend to play, and swindled the same amount of remuneration as paid to others. In this way, he drifted along till King QiXuan died.
King QiMin succeeded to the throne. Under his father’s influence, King QiMin also loved to listen to the Yu. The only difference was that he liked to listen to solos, not ensembles. King QiMin proclaimed that the players must perform one by one for him.
When NanGuo heard of this, he was afraid. He knew he could not drift along with the crowd any longer, so he snuck away that very night.
Meaning
Fraudulent methods can be exchanged for temporary success but not for a lifetime of success. Only by studying hard and making oneself have real talents and practical learning can people achieve real success.
Examples in Software Development
Fakers in software teams are common, in particular in the area of Test Automation and Continuous Testing, which is unfortunate. Ironically, fake test automation and CI/CD engineers can be exposed instantly.
Fake Test Automation Engineer
About ten years ago, I worked on a government project. The new CIO introduced IBM’s Rational Suite, including Rational Functional Tester (RFT). Nick claimed he had developed over 10,000 IBM RFT automated tests and joined as a senior automated tester…
