Very excited to be talking about how to positively impact software testing in your organization at the 2016 QASymphony Quality Jam. It’s an incredible line up featuring one of my favorite speakers/authors Scott Berkun who has previously blogged on reinvention for me! Hope to see you in Atlanta!
Register HERE
I recently had the privilege of writing the foreword to my good friend David Greenlees new book, “Software Testing as a Martial Art”. I encourage you all the buy the book on Leanpub HERE and spread the word for anyone looking for some great insights into the world of software testing. Here is what I had to say about David and his book…enjoy!
Celebrating individuals & organizations championing the nationwide movement to increase diversity in STEM education. This special night – a capstone event of Social Media Week 2016 – will bring together leaders from tech, government, non-profit and education for the biggest celebration of its kind.
From QASymphony‘s blog…enjoy! (Register here for the playback)
Doran Jones is proud to present a free screening of CodeGirl and networking event at our Urban Development Center in the South Bronx. Our special guest for the evening will be NYC CTO Minerva Tantoco! Hope to see you there!
By 2017, the app market will be valued at $77 billion. Over 80% of these developers are male. The Technovation Challenge aims to change that by empowering girls worldwide to develop apps for an international competition. From rural Moldova to urban Brazil to suburban Massachusetts, CODEGIRL follows teams who dream of holding their own in the world’s fastest-growing industry. The winning team gets $10K to complete and release their app, but every girl discovers something valuable along the way.
Website: www.codegirlmovie.com
Twitter: twitter.com/codegirlmovie
Facebook: http://fb.com/codegirlmovie
Instagram: instagram.com/codegirlmovie/
October 21, 2015
By Cailin McKenna
“The discussion also focused on incorporation of minority youths into the industry. “By 2020, the demand for technology resources is only going to be met by about 60 percent by people who come from universities,” said Keith Klain, co-CEO of Doran Jones, a technology consultant firm located in the South Bronx. “There is a huge opportunity to keep those jobs in New York by providing people with alternative backgrounds access to those jobs.””
Most software testing conferences suck. There, I said it…
For all our talk about critical thinking, hard questions, the pursuit of scrutiny, the reality is the majority of testing conferences are echo chambers of what we already know. Vendors get keynotes and the long-standing run of uranium depleted skulls get to rehash their talking points – one tired, old, boring talking point at a time.
In my opinion, there are only a handful of software testing conferences worth going to – and TestBash is one of them. When I heard that the Ministry of Testing was coming to New York, I instantly got a hold of Rosie and asked to be a part of it. Three things make a great conference, diversity of thought, the speakers and most importantly the community that attends, and TestBash brings plenty to the table for all of them.
But don’t take my word for it, check out TestBash NY and see for yourself why its the only software testing conference I’m attending this year – you will not be disappointed.
Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Excellence in Testing
“A lot of young people no longer see the trades and skilled manufacturing as a viable career, but I promise you, folks can make a lot more potentially with skilled manufacturing or the trades than they might with an art history degree.” – President Barack Obama
When it comes to useless college degrees, according to the President, I might possibly have hit the lottery. Art. Of all the things you can study at university, art has to be the subject most often associated with useless, navel gazing, impractical pursuits of higher learning. I mean, what could you possibly do with a degree focused on creativity, communicating abstract ideas, and viewing things in their appropriate context?
The first time I spoke in public was a complete disaster.
I was working in London as a Managing Consultant running the Software QualityManagement practice for the UK and the MD of the region asked me to give an overview of the business – at the annual meeting of the entire company! Now I had spoken dozen of times in private at project and sales meetings, but this was different, as I had never gotten up on stage to present in front of hundreds of people. But being filled with my usual unwarranted self-confidence, I readily said “of course” when asked and then set about trying to figure out what I was going to do.
Come hear NYC’s leading entrepreneurs and investors discuss startup life in the Bronx and NYC. Panelists will discuss their experiences, highlighting the challenges and triumphs of startup business in the City.
Register HERE
Panelists include:
Majora Carter: Co-founder, Startup Box
Pedro Torres Picón: Founder, Quotidian Ventures
Kathryn Finney: Founder & Managing Director, DigitalUndivided
Keith Klain: CEO, Doran Jones
Issie Lapowsky: Staff Writer, Wired
Additionally, the Digital.NYC partnership will outline NYC’s best tech and startup resources, including today’s most effective ways to find a job, access startup capital, and tap into NYC’s burgeoning tech and startup scene.
This event is being held in partnership with the Bronx Academy of Software Engineering and the Bronx Tech Meetup.
Digital.NYC is the official online hub of the New York City startup and technology ecosystem, bringing together every company, startup, investor, event, job, class, blog, video, workspace, accelerator, incubator, resource and organization in the five boroughs. It is the result of a unique public/private partnership between the office of Mayor Bill de Blasio, the New York City Economic Development Corporation, IBM, Gust, and over a dozen leading NYC-based technology and media companies.
Love this story on the Doran Jones UDC in Marketplace! Listen to the story here
This is an article I wrote for the January 2015 issue of Women Testers…you can read the entire magazine here…enjoy!
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” ― Eleanor Roosevelt
I am a product of my environment. I have benefited from a lifelong positive model for diversity starting with my mother, to my wife, multiple bosses, friends, to my industry colleagues. Strong, intelligent men and women who inspire and challenge me, and make me think differently about who I am and how I see the world have surrounded me for as long as I can remember. I am grateful for that experience, but I realize that not everyone has had the advantages that I have enjoyed. As well, part of the social contract, as Elizabeth Warren says is to “take a hunk of that and pay forward for the next kid who comes along.” Continue reading
Absolutely love this post by Scott Berkun that was inspired by my experience with the masters of reinvention at Per Scholas…enjoy!
Life as Reinvention – Scott Berkun
“There is a list of sayings on a whiteboard near my desk that I can’t help but notice several times a day. It contains ideas I try to remember, things I forget are true and important about the life I want to have. Near the top of the list is this one: you could be dead. It makes me laugh every time I see it, for reasons I can’t entirely explain. The part I know will make the most sense to you is how when we’ve been alive for awhile, we forget what being alive means. We slide into a paper cage of our own habits and forget that with a little effort we can slide our way into new habits too. I can stand up whenever I want. Or sit down. Or put on some music, or close my eyes and lose myself in silence. I could dance, scream, stand on my desk, or anything I choose to do. Anyone can do an infinite number of different things, small and large, in this or in any moment as long as they are still alive. But I forget. We all forget. We live many of our waking moments asleep in a dream of our own invention, a dream of boredom and regret that we don’t even enjoy. We become familiar with our favorite memories and allow ourselves to believe the feeling of familiarity is an acceptable replacement for investing in the life we have today.”