“Dissent is the native activity of the scientist, and it has got him into a good deal of trouble in the last years. But if that is cut off, what is left will not be a scientist. And I doubt whether it will be a man.” – Jacob Bronowski

If you care about craftsmanship in testing or about software quality in general, stop reading this and go sign the petition to stop ISO Standard 29119 from being published in its entirety. If you need more information about why you should sign the petition, watch James Christie dismantling of standards in general from his talk at the AST CAST 2014, “Standards – promoting quality or restricting competition?”

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I was incredibly honored to receive the “Person of the Year” award at the 2014 Per Scholas ROI Dinner. Here is the video of what we are doing at Doran Jones and the UDC, and my acceptance speech. Thanks to everyone for a great night!

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SmartBear asked software testers what they love about testing – because we love it too.

Special thanks to Peter Varhol, JeanAnn Harrison, Keith Klain, Lorinda Brandon, Nick Olivo, Scott Barber, Mark Tomlinson, Dave Coleman, Alex Bartol, and the Infinio QA team.

Resources:

http://smartbear.com

http://www.ministryoftesting.com

TestBash is just around the corner now, and to celebrate we’ve got a series of interviews with our illustrious speakers. Next up, Keith Klain: Continue reading …

As those of you who know me personally or follow my career in the testing industry know, leaving Barclays and the Global Test Center was a very difficult decision for me. Implementing context driven testing principles at that scale in a 300 year old investment bank, was a fantastic opportunity to learn, grow, make mistakes and spend time with some of the best testers on the planet.

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Sent this to my team today…going to take some time off and get prepared for my next gig…thanks to everyone at Barclays, the GTC, and the testing industry who have made it an unforgettable experience. See you all soon! – KK

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Always do sober what you said you’d do drunk. That will teach you to keep your mouth shut. – Ernest Hemingway

I recently gave a talk at the EuroSTAR conference in Gothenburg, Sweden about how I feel you can re-frame the perception of your testing effort in your organisation. A big part of the philosophy underpinning my approach is to be honest, frank and up front about what is, and is not working with yourself first – then address anything that comes after that.

Part of my talk is about how bias and perceptions are formed, and I take several (hopefully humorous)  pokes at the software testing industry to illustrate my point. I feel strongly, that we accept far too much nonsense and unverified claims about software testing, and in order for there to be fundamental change, those narratives that bounce around the echo chamber of testing conferences, vendors and blogs have to stop.

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“This is the true joy in life: Being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one, being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it what I can. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.” – George Bernard Shaw

I was recently awarded the Software Test Professionals 2013 STP Luminary Award, which aside from being flattering beyond belief, was a great honor to be included in such an incredible group of nominees. Every person nominated for the award has contributed a tremendous amount to the software testing industry, and I am grateful to be counted among their ranks. The award describes a luminary as “someone who has inspired others by their actions and the results of those actions on the profession”. I am fortunate to be one of those people who love my industry and have a great job where I get to work with talented colleagues who inspire me by their quiet “illumination” every day.

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