Iain McCowatt

CGI

Iain McCowatt is a context-driven tester, test manager, and automator whose experience and passion for testing spans multiple industries over more than a decade. As a test practice lead and program test manager with CGI in Atlantic Canada, Iain specializes in providing clients with innovative solutions to difficult testing problems and in building teams that place an emphasis on the skill of the tester. Having been both a customer and provider of testing, he takes a particular interest in the value that testing can provide. In his spare time, Iain is active in the software testing community, serves as a volunteer instructor with the Association of Software Testing, and blogs at exploringuncertainty.com.

Speaker Presentations

Thursday, April 11, 2013 - 3:15pm

Test Management

Changing the Testing Conversation from Cost to Value

The software testing business is in the grip of a commoditization trend in which enterprises routinely flip flop between vendors—vendors who are engaged in a race to the bottom on price. This trend introduces perverse incentives for service providers, undervalues skill, and places excessive emphasis on processes, tools, and methods. The result is a dumbing down of testing and the creation of testing services that are little more than placebos.