You're waist deep in your third month of late nights, weekends, and shipping stress; you can see and feel your team's energy waning. The goal is in sight but still far off, and you need the very best from everyone to reach the goal. How are you going to motivate and energize your team to reach the finish line? This article explores the major issues test team leaders face: keeping a team motivated and knowing when it needs to be energized.

Why wait to see your candidate work? Implement an audition into the interviewing process and add dimension to your candidate's resume. In this column, Johanna Rothman discusses how you can increase the effectiveness of an interview by implementing a well-planned audition. Whether this audition takes place over the phone or in person, you'll gather a richer perspective of the candidate's capabilities and how easily the applicant can adapt to your working environment. Put your candidate's words to the test; the results of an audition may break the tie between two superb applicants.

We should know that software development methods are situational, so why do so many people believe one process should work for every project? One size does not fit all and rarely do quick-fix methods help the process fit. In this week's column, Pete McBreen considers why we jump on the latest software development trend and what the fallout is when the trend and the project don't match.

When your idea of a completed task is significantly different from that of your team's members, you're asking for trouble. In this week's column, Peter Clark outlines some steps you can take to ensure that everyone on your team understands your expectations when you ask them if they're "done."