Testing United team decided to bring a professional testing conference to the Central European region and connect professionals with the trendsetters in the industry.
Software testers are like Cinderella. They look for little stones and split beans from the peas and rice. Figuratively speaking. Testers come to the scene at the end of development process to find bugs and errors in software before it is release in the hands of users and customers. It’s even more necessary now, when users are expecting to have flawless service and updates as soon as possible.
Slovakia is becoming a powerhouse of software development for business and corporate clients. From small studios serving clients across the globe to larger software houses, Slovak skilled professionals can easily compete with the technical talent globally, however we need to keep up with the latest trends and educate ourselves.
Testing often only comes at the end of software development cycle, though that doesn’t mean it is less important. The future is in engaging the whole team throughout the software development lifecycle. Testers are and should be involved from the beginning when exploring mere ideas until after a release when testing on production. It strengthens software applications by improving their performance and making them error-free and more reliable.
The goal of the conference is to gather experts, share knowledge on challenges for testing brought by digital transformation with over 20 speakers from the UK, Netherlands, Poland, Turkey and more.
As one of our keynote speakers, agile testing expert Lisi Hocke from German FlixMobility pointed out: “The other most awesome thing is the human side of tech: in the end, people develop software products for people. “
With keynote speakers we are trying to strike a balance among different approaches to testing from user behaviour, automation, artificial intelligence and agile. These are not just buzzwords, but presentations packed with knowledge and things to take home and apply in your day to day business.
These three keynote speakers especially excite me and I look forward to hearing more from them.
Tom van den Ven is a must read author for every tester with his books IoTMap and Testing in the digital age. For 15 years he is active in the field of High Tech testing. As a High Tech test expert he is a frequently asked sparring partner for Sogeti High Tech customers with regard to test projects. Being a member of SogetiLabs and an ambassador for SPIRIT within the Sogeti group, he is a recognized international authority on IoT and High Tech testing. His presentation will look at the use of AI in testing, from testing it to using it.
Even though Lisi Hocke will take her first keynote at our conference she has a very clear idea on developing successful teams working in agile environments. And what she likes about it?
“When it comes to my personal experience in agile environments, I enjoyed especially the following: flat hierarchies, encouraged autonomy, freedom to try things out and adapt to the results, focus on continuous improvement, close collaboration with the people, that I know what I did every day as I see a product evolve, that we never stand still so it never gets boring, that I don’t have to dress up but can come as I am. I can be myself and bring my whole self.”
Lisi’s keynote will look at the whole-team approach of building quality in and illustrate how experiments drive the future of testing at FlixBus. Company she works creates smart and green long-distance travel solutions powered by customised tech. FlixMobility wants for everyone to experience the world, from taking the bus to hopping on a train.
The inspiring thing about Lisi is her point on diversity: “So this is not only about increasing the number of women, but in general increasing diversity. We all benefit from diverse working environments. Our products benefit from diverse perspectives, enabling us to design better solutions.”
Gojko Adzic is a partner at Neuri Consulting LLP and another notable testing author. He is the winner of the 2016 European Software Testing Outstanding Achievement Award, and the 2011 Most Influential Agile Testing Professional Award. Gojko’s book Specification by Example won the Jolt Award for the best book of 2012, and his blog won the UK Agile Award for the best online publication in 2010.
His talk Five key challenges for software quality tomorrow will look at new landscape that requires teams to change their approach to reduce risk and ensure quality in their software. He will also present some emerging ideas that will help address these challenges and inspire you to rethink your approach to testing.
Bringing the first testing conference to Slovakia is just the beginning. Organizers want to take the extra mile and invite more women to the table and to the stage.
The conference looks at the future of software testing, but we all live in the real world and want to act responsible towards it. The goal is to minimize waste, print only when necessary and use as much sustainable materials as possible. And of course, have a good time at a social gathering to meet in an informal atmosphere and experience Bratislava from a different angle.
