Keynotes

As testers and test managers we often find ourselves struggling just to survive within our organization—sometimes with the possibility of job loss due to outsourcing looming. Often, we are told to become more “effective,” “efficient,” and do “more with less.” However, most testers and test managers are unsure of what those mandates actually mean. Today, it is not sufficient to just survive; we must take initiatives to thrive. Lloyd Roden shares ten valuable lessons on how you can become better at testing and thrive in your career. Lloyd's lessons include the importance of using modern technology in testing, using test design techniques when reviewing documentation, testing the testers with techniques such as bug seeding, reporting project waste, providing management with feedback on decisions that they made, becoming a pioneer or explorer rather than a settler or outlaw in your organization, and more. Lloyd’s advice is practical—and challenging—for all testers, test leads, and test managers.

As the testing discipline continues to evolve—and the demands on testers increase—we need to look for new paradigms to guide our work. Thomas McCoy believes the profession of journalism has much to offer in helping us ask the right kinds of questions, be heard, and deliver bad news effectively. In many ways, our profession has ideals similar to those of journalism: our first obligation should be to the truth, we must maintain independence (even when embedded in agile teams), and our mission includes the protection of society. While not all techniques (such as hacking into the voicemail accounts of developers) would be appropriate, established values like impact, proximity, and timeliness can help guide our communication and make it more succinct and effective. Join Thomas to learn about employing investigative techniques, developing sources, capturing an audience, and writing compelling stories, using proven methods from the world’s second-oldest profession.