This isn’t your parent’s generation of computers and interaction, and the speed of change is only going to accelerate going forward. Software development, and software testing, is undergoing a radical change, but while organizations have embraced the idea of changes in development and delivery, why are we still looking at old, so called “best practices” in software testing as though we’re still testing the software the previous generation wrote? In this talk, I will discuss a variety of ways that testing is moving ahead and proving to be just as relevant as it ever has, and how we can equip the next generation of software testers. Through initiatives like SummerQAmp, PerScholas, Weekend Testing and other environments aimed at delivering hands on, real world skills to up and coming testers. Emphasis on rapid learning, direct peer communication, and an emphasis on heuristics and their application can give that edge to new testers, and could also help spark creativity and curiosity in established testers, too.

1. Sponsored by

2. The New Testers: Critical Skills and
Capabilities to Deliver Quality at Speed
Michael Larsen
Sr. Q.A. Engineer (SoftwareTester)
Socialtext
Blog: http://mkltesthead.com
Twitter: @mkltesthead

3. Speaker Bio
Michael Larsen is a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer with Socialtext in Palo
Alto, California, USA. Over the past two decades, he has been involved in software testing for a
range of products and industries, including network routers & switches, virtual
machines, capacitance touch devices, video games, and client/server, distributed database &
web applications.
Michael is a Black Belt in the Miagi-Do School of SoftwareTesting, a founder and facilitator of
the Americas chapter of Weekend Testing, Chair of the Education Special Interest Group with the
Association for SoftwareTesting (AST), a lead instructor of the Black Box SoftwareTesting
courses through AST, and curator of training materials for SummerQAmp. Michael writes the
TESTHEAD blog (http://mkltesthead.com) and can be found onTwitter at @mkltesthead. A list
of books, articles, papers, and presentations can be seen at
http://www.linkedin.com/in/mkltesthead

4. In This Session, You’ll Learn…
• A variety of ways that testing is moving ahead, and proving to be just as
relevant as it ever has, and how we can equip the next generation of
software testers.
• Through initiatives like SummerQAmp, PerScholas,WeekendTesting and
other environments aimed at delivering hands on, real world skills to up
and coming testers.
• Emphasis on rapid learning, direct peer communication, and an emphasis
on heuristics and their application can give that edge to new testers, and
could also help spark creativity and curiosity in established testers, too.

5. What’s wrong With The “Old
Testers”?

6. What’s Wrong with the "Old Testers"?
• Heavy Process, Heavy Scripting
• Over dependence and belief in
the capabilities of Automation
• Regulated Processes where
Regulated Processes are not
needed
• A false belief in the power and
effectiveness of “certifications”
that don’t actually focus on
developing skills

7. What Will the New Testers bring to the Table?
• “SapientTesting” – James Bach
• Advocates for Issues
– what’s more
important, lots of
bugs, or the championing
of important bugs that
actually get fixed?

8. – NewTesters don’t
want to prove the
software works.They
want to find how it is
broken

9. –NewTesters are
not Bug
Shields, they
are Beat
Reporters

10. –NewTesters deliver
and tell the story of
your product “What is the most terrifying
headline about your company
you could imagine seeing in the
newspaper? Wouldn’t you want
your testers to not only find out
that terrifying headline, but
inform you so that you could
prevent it from ever
appearing?” --Elisabeth
Hendrickson, “Explore It!”

11. A focus on both the Scientific And Socratic Methods
– NewTesters are
Scientists
– NewTesters are
Philosophers
– NewTesters are Skeptics

12. Where can I find these New Testers?
• Computer Science departments at
universities
– Testers are coming into their own
– Not content to be also ran programmers
– Don’t consider testing a consolation prize, recruit
testers for testing on its own merits

13. – Don’t assume good tester == good programmer.
– It might, but the best testing skills often fall
outside of any programming discipline

14. Other University Majors and Professions
– Humanities
– Journalism
– Customer Support Representatives
– Psychologists
– Scientists

15. Who is Training these New Testers?
• SummerQAmp
– Program in conjunction with
SummerJobs+ program
– Working with 16-24 year olds w/
an emphasis on software testing
skills
– Published curricula focusing on
scientific method, testing
skills, bug reporting &
advocacy, SDLC/STLC, context, bi
as & debiasing and software/web
skills.

16. • PerScholas
– Mission: Break the cycle of poverty by providing
technology education, access, training and job
placement services for people in underserved
communities.
– Early pioneer in bridging the digital divide for
families and children in the South Bronx
– operate the largest and oldest professional IT
workforce development program in NewYork
City, now embarked on an ambitious national
expansion.

17. • WeekendTesting
– Worldwide gathering of skilled
software testing crafts-persons
– Commitment to
teaching, learning and
facilitating
– Chapters all over the world
(India, Europe,Australia/New
Zealand,Americas)
– An easily transportable model to
your organization

18. • Miagi-do School of
SoftwareTesting
– Zero profit mentoring and
development program
– Focused on testing challenges, skills
development and community
engagement
– Small group mentoring dedicated to
bringing out the best in the software
testing community

19. The Specialists
• The Explorers
• The PerformanceTweakers
• TheToolsmiths (automation,CI, deployment tools, etc)
• The Evil Masterminds (Security)
• The Humanists (human factors, usability)
• The Storytellers
• The Mentors

20. • less scripting, more active
thinking
• less checking, more real
testing
• less blind faith, more
scientific skepticism
• creative, inventive, intuitive,
mindful

21. Summary
• The future is now, and I can introduce you to
hundreds of them
• better yet, why not come join us and see for
yourself?
– SummerQAmp: http://www.SummerQAmp.org/
– PerScholas: http://PerScholas.org/
– WeekendTesting: http://weekendtesting.com/
– Miagi-do: http://miagido.org/blog/

22. Any questions?