The Catalyst

Several years ago I found myself pressured by some colleagues to join the executive team of my local software quality association. I had often considered joining as it seemed an excellent venue for networking and getting more involved in the software testing/QA community, but I always had a reason for not joining. I thought, “What do I really have to offer?”, “I am too busy this year”, and simply, “I’m scared!”.

Over the course of a few weeks, suggestions quickly became, “We don’t need to fill the newsletter editor position, because Selena is going to do it.”  My colleagues were not surprised when I finally said I would take the position; they knew me well. The motivation of my colleagues, and learning that other people felt the same way I did, helped me overcome the reservations I had in joining the executive team.

The following year I accepted a nomination to become the president. My reasoning? I was terrified to speak in public. I figured that if I was ever going to present at conferences and provide training courses, I needed to face that fear. I conquered the worst of that fear during the first season by speaking at membership meetings making announcements and introducing monthly speakers. After two years in that role I felt much more confident and stepped down to pursue other opportunities in the testing community.

Association for Software Testing

Following a nomination for an AST Board Member position a couple months ago, I found out at CAST that I was elected to the Board by the membership. I am excited to become more involved in the AST community by helping to grow, support, and provide new opportunities for the organization. While I have a Board Member role, I plan to decide on a particular area of focus after spending a couple months figuring out how I can best add value. I truly believe in the spirit and goals of AST in promoting and supporting the evolution of software testing as an intelligent, creative, and context-driven craft.

This summer I also started co-instructing the BBST Foundations course offered by AST after taking it in the spring (read about my experience). I finished my first co-instruction in July alongside Rebecca Fiedler and Michael Larsen, and am currently co-instructing the August session alongside John McConda, Brett Leonard, Michael Larsen, and Jen McCann. I have learned even more in this role, both from my fellow instructors and the students.

Other Organizations

I support a number of other software testing organizations in a variety of ways, while my time and contributions are volunteer-based. I contribute for a number of reasons, the primary being a desire to contribute to this community on a larger scale to help herald in a new era for software testers around the world (one where intelligence, critical-though, and creativity are expected and recognized).

• Software Test Professionals: They have recently undergone a rebranding to create a community for software test professionals who want to learn, engage, and network. I am speaking and leading a workshop at the upcoming STP Conference in October, have been an interviewee for Matt Heusser’s weekly This Week in Software Testing broadcast, have an article releasing on the STP website this week, and am giving a webinar for STP in September on test management. Again, this is a volunteer-based community, and the majority of my involvement has been non-paid work. I have recently joined a couple of STP Crews, though have yet to see what they are about in practice. A great way to contribute and gain recognition through a variety of avenues.

• Software Testing Club: This is an open-community of software testers. My recent activity has been limited to contributions to their newspaper, The Testing Planet. I have read a lot of really good content, contributed by test practitioners, trainers, and consultants who are truly passionate about software testing. While contributions are not paid for, there is a broad audience of testers who read this publication, and the website content, due to the breadth of the community. Another great way to contribute to the field.

• Waterloo Workshops on Software Testing: A local workshop I started with a colleague this year. It is a peer workshop with an emphasis on mutual learning, sharing hands-on experiences, solving practical problems, and promoting contributions to the field. We aim to build skills in software testing and allow people who are passionate about software testing to network with their peers, and help to move thinking about testing forward. Contact me if you are interested in participating in an upcoming workshop.

• Kitchener-Waterloo Software Quality Association: I continue to offer my support to my local software quality/testing organization, the KWSQA. I promote the organization, present at membership meetings and the yearly conference, and (try) to attend monthly membership meetings. I declined a larger role in the organization this season, due to my other obligations aside from starting up my own business.

What Are You Doing?

How are you supporting the software testing community?

Volunteering takes time and requires following through on committments. BUT it is also extremely rewarding in a number of ways:

• A sense of pride and satisfaction in helping the testing community grow and evolve.
• Networking with like-minded individuals you can call on if you need advice or help.
• Meet and network with people you respect and admire.
• Learn even more about your craft as a result of all of these, which increases your skills, professionalism, and drives your career forward.
• Build recognition for yourself in the industry and propel your career forwards.

There are many opportunities to assist with, and contribute to any of these organizations and many others. Let go of your excuses and fear and take your first step in helping the software testing industry gain the respect it deserves. Whether you can pitch in a few hours, or several days, over the course of a year, any organization will be glad to have you on board as volunteers are in short supply.

Contact me for questions about, or even a desire to volunteer for, any of the organizations I mentioned. You can even contact me if you can’t find a local organization you would like to contribute to – I may be able to locate something suitable, or connect you with someone else who can.

I challenge you to step up your game!

At Agile Coach Camp Canada in June 2010, I lead a session on How to Transform a Hero Culture. It was the first session of the day, and a spirited discussion with many new friends, old friends, and people I admire.

Organizational culture is a critical factor in whether a new process or methodology will be successful. Whether you are an Agile coach, a change agent, or a natural leader, you recognize that if an organization’s culture is not in alignment with the new direction, and is unwilling to shift, the new direction will most likely fail. This is a big challenge!

I have worked in several organizations where a hero culture was prevalent. What I mean by this is that heroic efforts to rescue a failing situation are rewarded and encouraged. In this type of culture, whether fixing a critical issue or working 60 hour weeks, you are what everyone should aspire to be.

There are many types of heroes, for example:

• Someone who wants recognition, power, and rewards, and often happens to be in the right place at the right time to solve problems.
• Someone who doesn’t take care to do a high quality job the first time around, and then swoops in to clean up their own mess.
• Someone who does high quality work, has good judgement, tries to keep a low profile, yet is a natural leader for change and problem resolution.

If you are trying to create a culture that embraces teamwork and collaboration, regardless of the type(s) of hero(es) in your organization, you will want to help evolve the culture away from one that supports and rewards heroes.

How to Transform a Hero Culture

Michael Sahota and I summarized the key findings of the session at Agile Coach Camp Canada to transform a hero culture. You can watch it in the video below.

What do you think?

Do you think a hero culture should be encouraged?

Or do you think they should be transformed into something different? If so, what are your idea’s on how to transform a hero culture?

I look forward to your comments!

- Selena

The Software Test Professionals Conference is quickly coming up Oct 19-21.

Have you registered yet?

If so, I look forward to seeing you there!

If not, what are you waiting for?!

Read on for 5 reasons to attend:

1) You are a Software Test Professional – if so, you need to be there! This conference is all about people like you who want to learn, improve themselves, connect with like-minded people, and grow themselves professionally. If any of these apply to you, sign up now!

• You are a tester, a manager of test teams, a project test lead, a programmer who tests, someone who manages beta testers or usability testers, or someone just interested in increasing the value of testing.
• You spend time improving your skill sets (or want to), and believe that continuous learning and challenging yourself is a necessary part of your job.
• You want to increase the value of testing in your organization.
• You are not interested in being a robot who blindly does what you are told, but finds ways to improve the way you do your own work so you can do your best work possible.  You also encourage this in others, by leading by example.

2) Learn by Doing, Not Listening in the Hands-On Testing Techniques Lab. The best way to learn new skills is to practice them hands-on while you are learning them. Come and challenge yourself with new methods in a safe environment with instructors and other students. This is a rare opportunity at any conference, so be sure to take advantage of the opportunity (and bring your laptop!).

3) Attend My Sessions & Talk With Me! There are many other great presenters to check out as well – but I know you’ll want to attend mine. ?

My pre-conference workshop, Test Management Clinic, will help you explore and learn techniques for solving real-life test management challenges. You may even leave with appropriate solutions to challenges you are currently experiencing. Register ASAP to reserve your seat now!

My session Explore Beyond the Obvious in the Hands-On Testing Techniques Lab will allow you to try different testing approaches to dig deeper into seemingly simple applications, and learn new information about products you test.

The panel I am speaking on about Reducing the Cost of Testing will help you gain ideas in reducing test costs, understand tradeoffs in doing so, and learn how to talk about testing costs with management in a reasoned, articulate manner.

4) Improve Your Career via the multitude of opportunities awaiting you. Network with people who are driving changes in the industry and understand their strategies so you can too. Connect with people around the globe who can help you with some of your challenges, and vice-versa. Learn leadership strategies to champion initiatives and changes in your workplace. Improve your skills in working with management, and making testing a valuable part of the organization.

5) STP Conference is in Las Vegas! Seriously, how much fun will that be? If you ever needed an excuse to get yourself to Vegas, this is it. Imagine – spending days learning to your hearts content and talking with fellow test professionals, then enjoying evenings in the fun of Las Vegas while connecting with fabulous testers from around the globe.

Register Now – The Early Bird Deadline ends this Friday August 20, which provides a $500 savings off the conference package.

See you in Vegas!

A bold statement? … Perhaps.

If you have ever attended CAST though, I am sure you would agree with me. If you haven’t, check out my earlier post on Why I Attend CAST to learn why.

Exploratory Test Automation

This year I started with a full day workshop by Harry Robinson on Exploratory Test Automation. He challenged the prevalent notion that test automation means running the exact same set of scripts every time. The same idea is still rather prevalent when it comes to manual testing, but exploratory testing is starting to make inroads in the testing industry to change that. You may be surprised to learn that similar principles can be applied to test automation too.

The basics: Challenge automation assumptions, vary inputs, vary paths through a program, automated tests <> human-driven tests.

Watch for an upcoming blog post expanding on this.

I have been fortunate in guiding teams in applying basic exploratory-like automation techniques, but appreciated the stories and experiences that Harry shared. They were interesting challenges to hear about.

Though I was not able to attend, Cem Kaner and Doug Hoffman also did a track session on the same topic, which I heard was also quite good.

Conversation Starters

After a rushed dinner, I spent Monday evening chatting with a number of other people about Mentorship and Consulting.  I had volunteered to be on a ‘panel’ for each of these and ended up being double-booked. Pleasantly, both turned into informal chat sessions, which allowed all participants and panel members to hang out and learn from each other.

The Mentorship talk focused on the qualities and behaviours of good mentors and/or coaches, and things to consider if you wanted to become a mentor.  The Consulting talk focused on the building blocks in deciding to become a consultant, what to do before you make the leap, and how to get through those first couple of years. Good discussions all around.

Art of Visualization

Wednesday afternoon I presented, ‘The Art of Visualization’, discussing how visual modeling techniques help improve effectiveness in testing, and allow testers to add more value to stakeholders. I shared examples of how visual models like flowcharts, mindmaps, informal whiteboard diagrams, and use case diagrams are valuable tools for customer requirements, software designs, test strategies, and problem resolution. Learn more via my presentation slides, and supporting paper.

I particularly enjoyed the discussion that occurred during the latter portion of my session. Participants questioned some ideas, shared their own experiences, and even drafted a list of tools that can be used to enable the use of visual models. Thanks to all who attended!

Watch for an upcoming blog post on this.

Communication Chameleons

Wednesday afternoon I also presented, “Communication Chameleons”, discussing the importance of testers being able to speak effectively to different types of stakeholders. I shared a story about a coworker who did this rather well and held the respect (and ear) of everyone he worked with, from customer support, to programmers, through to the executive team. The presentation finished up summarizing important parts of communication as testers, such as active listening, engagement, adaptive behaviours, and information radiation. Learn more via my presentation slides, and supporting paper.

The discussion that followed was engaging as attendees shared their own communication experiences, recommendations, and insights. I thank everyone who attended for their contributions.

Unplanned Activities

It used to be that when I went to a conference I planned out all the sessions I was going to attend and the evening activities I would partake in. A couple of years ago I broke that habit, and learned to ‘take it as it comes’. My conference experiences are now never what I expected, yet seem to provide me with exactly what I needed.

Case in point: While I had thought to attend sessions on Tuesday, I ended up spending most of the day talking with different testers. The discussions were quite wonderful (both the people, and the topics) and covered a variety of testing, software, and other various topics.

On the various thread: One person I spoke to was like fate intervening – they had a teenage son with Asperger’s Syndrome (high functioning autism), while I suspect that my son may as well. We spent time comparing stories, and they offered helpful advice. In another fate-like intervention, I had a conversation with someone about experiences with chronic pain (from which I suffer) and pain management strategies. I now have new approaches to look into that I had not investigated before. I did not expect those experiences at CAST!

Note: Evening activities are a must!

At CAST this year, the Rebel Alliance hosted a sponsored event (with several independents kicking in sponsorship funds) with drinks and snacks. There was a strong turn out with many conference attendees partaking in the goods and enjoying conversations.

Otherwise, while going out with folks for dinner and drinks is exhausting every night, I strongly recommend it. It is well worth the effort, as you will have conversations you would never have at the conference otherwise.

Games nights are also strongly encouraged!  Wednesday evening saw a sizable number of people playing interesting strategy games. While I’m a board-game fanatic, I didn’t get to participate as I needed to get out to eat dinner. I did buy one of the games on my way home though, and look forward to playing it soon.

Through the rest of the conference I was pleased to spend time talking with so many friendly, intelligent, thoughtful, and insightful testers. I hung with old friends, met people I had only met online through BBST or Twitter, as well as people who knew me and my blog (how cool!), and many others I met for the first time. I can’t possibly list everyone, so you will have to trust me in that the calibre of people who attend CAST is top-notch.

Thanks to everyone I met and spoke with, I appreciate you for the pleasure of your company, time and insights.

Next Year

CAST 2011 will be held in Seattle, Washington.

This is sure to be another amazing conference!  The Conference Chair, Jonathan Bach, and the Program Chair, James Bach, already have some great ideas that I am excited to see occur. Be sure to book the date as soon as it is announced.

If you would like to be involved as a volunteer, be sure to contact AST, Jon, or James, or myself (I’ll hook you up) asap.  We can always use more help!

I hope to see you at CAST next year … and bring some friends along too!

When asked by Jonathan Bach if I was doing a lightning talk, I wimped out. I had never seen one done, had no idea what to talk about, and certainly had no clue how to do it in less than five minutes. I eventually said I would do one if time allowed for it. It turned out that time did not allow (everyone was hungry), so StarEast was not meant to be the stage for my first lightning talk.

It ended up being at Agile Coach Camp Canada 2010. Instead of 5 minutes, I had a mere 3 minutes (the topic for which will be covered in a different post). I learned some interesting things through that experience, some of which surprised me.

Learnings from Lightning Talks:

• Your topic could be anything from something that irks you, a proclamation that falls in line with (or against) the event theme, promoting something you are working on, seeking other people to collaborate with, or a story that relates to the event somehow.
• Talk about something you are passionate about. If you are not passionate about your topic, the audience will sense it, and not pay you much attention. While your talk is only 3-5 minutes, the audience not paying attention may not seem like a big deal, but consider whether anyone will remember your talk, and if you want them to.
• Keep it simple. Don’t try to cover the meaning of life, research results equivalent to that for the search for cancer, or a one hour presentation crammed into 5 minutes. Pick 2 or 3 key points that you feel are the most important for people to take away from your talk, and stick to supporting those.
• Make your point. Don’t wait until the last minute to make your point clear. Despite the limited amount of time you have, if your message isn’t interesting or clear, people will tune you out. If you want folks to listen, make your point early on.
• Limit slides to few, and very simple. With a 3-5 minute window that starts immediately after the previous speaker finished, you don’t have time to figure out computer problems, or provide enough context to ensure audience members understood every teeny detail. Better yet, just skip them.
• Your talk might change. While the overall message for my talk is what I delivered, how I communicated it was quite a bit different. I was going to talk about trying to fit square pegs in round holes, but instead talked about something else (again, I’ll get to that in another post).

Lightning talks were a phenomenal way to share ideas with other people, in a fast and inspiring way.

It was amazing to hear so many different ideas from so many different people in such a short amount of time. I quickly discovered who had similar interests as me, who had conflicting ideas that I wanted to explore further, and who may be interesting to pair up with on a project. I was inspired and provoked to look at my own ideas from a different perspective. It was also a lot of fun!

Try It!

I really enjoyed my first lightning talk experience, and look forward to doing another one again soon (likely at CAST 2010, in the first week of August). If you haven’t tried one yet, I highly recommend it!

You don’t need a conference or big event for lightning talks. Try setting up a weekly team meeting as a series of lightning talks one week, or even do a lunch and learn for lightning talks. You will be amazed by the idea’s you hear, and by the energy created. Lightning talks are a great way to mix up the daily flow, generate new ideas and solutions, and find other people to collaborate with.

To learn more about lightning talks and some tips to excel at them, read more at:

http://agilecoachcampcanada.com/about/lightning-talks/

http://www.perl.com/pub/a/2004/07/30/lightningtalk.html

Agile Coach Camp Canada 2010, photo credit: Michael Lant

In my research last year, I learned that at an Open Space event, participants will create and manage their own agenda of working sessions around a central theme. This all happens onsite just before the sessions themselves begin.

What a novel idea! Meetings and conferences that are focused on what matters to the people attending, rather than being planned and decided upon by a committee or management ahead of time.

My first Open Space event was Agile Coach Camp Canada on June 11-12th, here in Waterloo, Ontario.

I was quite excited to see how Open Space would run… and how more than 60 people could possibly define and set a session schedule in less than 30 minutes.

After the unkeynote (more on that in my Agile Coach Camp Canada post), all conference participants gathered together. Our Open Space facilitator spent a short amount of time explaining what was going to happen:

• A large 8 x 4 grid was on the wall, with four time slots, and space for 8 parallel working sessions. If we needed more working sessions, we could easily add another parallel track.
• All participants were welcome to propose sessions of interest that were important to them, preferably in the form of a question. That will invite people with something to contribute to attend the session.
• Proposed sessions were written on an 8”x11” piece of paper, and signed with the session proposer’s name. The proposer then put their session into an available time slot.
• Participants juggled the session topics around to merge overlapping topics, and ensure that everyone would feel that their most important concerns and questions would be addressed throughout the day.
• The session board could change, shrink, or grow throughout the day as participants saw fit. We just couldn’t add more time slots.

Agile Coach Camp Canada 2010 - The Board; photo credit: Michael Lant

In about 20 minutes, more than 60 people had created the conference schedule for the day. It was amazing to observe and be a part of.

Who says large groups of people can’t get things done?

Our facilitator then outlined some simple “rules” in how the sessions would be run:

• Attend any session that we felt we could contribute to and learn something from (give and take).
• The Law of Two Feet meant that our feet are to be used to carry us to a place where we are contributing and learning. We could leave sessions part way through to attend another session. We could choose not to attend any session and instead have an important discussion with someone (or several people) about another topic entirely. The key was to make sure we were active participants.
• Spend no more than 1/N of the session talking to ensure everyone has opportunity to contribute (where N = # of session participants).

And that was it!

Each session involved active participants, with session leadership often changing hands throughout the hour-long time box. After the morning sessions were complete, all 16 were summarize by participants in 90 seconds apiece. This shared learnings from each session with the rest of the conference participants; a practice rarely seen at conferences. This repeated for the afternoon sessions.

To finish the day, we participated in closing activities that had people sharing highlights of their experiences, communicating appreciations to individual’s they appreciated through the weekend, and saying goodbye to both old and new friends.

The process used for Open Space sounds a bit familiar, don’t you think?

The difference between traditional conference formats and an open space format is akin to planning projects to the final detail upfront, versus using a just-in-time agile approach that addresses the most important needs at the right time. Add to that the important agile values of putting people first through collaboration, communication, appreciation, and celebration.

My colleague was right. I did love Open Space! I can’t wait to use it for future events and client engagements.

My first experience at the Conference of the Association for Software Testing (CAST) was in Toronto in July 2008.

I heard about CAST from a colleague who attended the conference the previous year in Seattle, and was hooked on what he said about it. Determined to go to the next one regardless of the location, my bank account was pleased when Toronto was confirmed (which is a mere one hour drive for me).  It was time to see what all the buzz was about.

While attending a pre-conference tutorial on the first day, I quickly felt and understood what my colleague was referring to.  It felt like a homecoming, with all my favourite testing relatives in attendance.  Many long-lost cousins, relatives I didn’t know I had, and even close family members who I often stayed in touch with. Relatively speaking, of course.  :)

Over the course of the conference, I found many things to love about CAST:

The attendees. People from around the world attended.  Everyone I met was excited, passionate, interactive, intent on helping one another, and all around friendly.  This may come as a surprise to those who know me, but I have often struggled to meet and talk with new people in large group settings.  It did not take long for me to jump in though!  And did I mention?  These people were smart and interesting!  The quality of the people that attend CAST are bar-none.

The session formats. One cool thing about CAST is that sessions are structured so that 2/3 of the time is alloted for the speaker to do their thing, and the other 1/3 is for attendees to ask questions.  The coolest part is how the question period is done.  It is moderated so discussion topics become threads that are followed through to completion before another topic is started.  You use different coloured cards to signal your intent to speak up, and a very talented moderator will add you to the appropriate place in the queue.  This makes for very interactive sessions.

The speakers. AST does a phenomenal job of selecting the speakers for the conference, providing a variety of presentation formats and topics.  You might find traditional presentations with powerpoint slides, a session with musical props, an interactive experiential exercise, or even some improv. Topics range from the technical, techniques, soft-skills, management focus, and even life experiences tied to testing. There is something for everyone’s tastes.

The organizers. Organizing a conference is hard work, and the folks that step up to do CAST do a great job. I have been fortunate to get to know many of the organizers for the last two conferences, and the upcoming one, fairly well. Every one of them is brilliant, down-to-earth, great to talk and debate with, fun to hang out with, and inspirational in what you can achieve when you set your mind to it. I applaud their contributions to the testing community.

The connections. I made a lot of wonderful connections with people, learned a lot during the sessions, and in conversations outside the sessions.  Many people I met at my first CAST in 2008 have become colleagues I communicate with throughout the year, and many of those, good friends too.  How cool is it to have a network of colleagues and friends in your line of work who live around the world?

I enjoyed my first CAST experience so much that I committed to attending the next one.

It was enticing to know it was in Colorado Springs, but better yet, to know that another reunion would occur in a year.  I ended up submitting a proposal and presenting at CAST 2009 (well, I facilitated an interactive session that was a lot of fun).  My experiences there were just as wonderful, as I solidified relationships, formed new ones, learned from colleagues, and just plain had fun.

Now CAST 2010 beckons in the town of Grand Rapids, Michigan, August 2-4, 2010.

CAST has become one of my must-attend conferences of any year, so I was pleased when I heard it was in Michigan.  A mere 5 hour drive from home, I could carpool with others and save on flight costs.  I am pleased to share that I am speaking at CAST this year, not for just one session, but two! I’m not sure what the organizers were thinking when they made that decision, but I’m happy to take it.  :)  Check out all the sessions here.

So, am I going to see you at CAST this year?

What are you waiting for?!

Isn’t learning and collaboration important for your professional and personal growth?

Get yourself signed up ASAP, because the early bird deadline ends tomorrow!

You are going to love your experience at CAST!

I look forward to meeting you there!

- Selena

• Work out a deal with your boss so you can show its value within X amount of time after returning.
• See if the conference organizers could use your help in exchange for a discount. Disclaimer:  I don’t know if this is feasible for CAST, but I have done that for other conferences I really wanted to go to.
• Ask for training time off.  So, pay for the conference & travel, but don’t lose vacation time.
• Attend anyway.  Yes, paying out of pocket sucks, and so does using vacation time.  My learning and growth are more important to me though, so I cut back on other expenses and save up to attend things that are good for me.
• Trust me, this conference is that good.

Attend CAST 2010

The 5th annual Conference of the Association for Software Testing

August 2-4, 2010, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA

“Skills in Testing”

About CAST

CAST reflects the AST’s core mission: to build community amongst scholars, practitioners, and students for the advancement of the practice of software testing. In 2010, CAST aims to leverage peer collaboration to build an enhanced understanding of how various skills influence tester effectiveness.

CAST offers a unique opportunity to learn and confer with others that simply isn’t found at other conferences. Each scheduled session allocates time for facilitated “open season” discussions that encourage participants to question and challenge the presentation. What takes place in the hallways, at receptions, and during meals and lightning talks truly sets CAST apart; for many attendees, the greatest value is derived from the opportunity to discuss and delve into the topics that matter to them.

Space is limited Register Today!

More information and Registration: www.CAST2010.org

Full Conference Pricing (non-member)
$630 by May 15th, 2010 ($280 savings)

We can’t wait to see you in Grand Rapids!