Follow the Ministry of Testing - Boston on Twitter!

I am happy to announce that I am the new Organizer of the Ministry of Testing, Boston chapter! ... or, at least that is what I have dubbed myself.

Back in January 2017, when the Greater Boston QA and Testing Meetup moved under the Ministry of Testing's umbrella, a community of software testers in the UK that was expanding into the United States, three things happened:

• The Meetup group was rebranded the "Ministry of Testing - Boston".
• I was invited by the founder of the group, Conrad Holloman, to be co-organizer, helping to plan meetups.   
• After month or so, I was asked if I could mind the store for the Spring. Between Conrad going back on duty and needing to put more effort in running a group he co-founded, Operation Code -- training veterans in a new software development career -- he wouldn't be available. 

After six months of me going all gung-ho, running targeted Facebook and Twitter ads for the group, running two or more events a month, cold-calling and cold-emailing to see if they could host a Meetup event and possibly speak to our group... Conrad mentioned that he was stepping down. Could I possibly fill the Organizer role?

I have to say, I am having the most fun with the group! I have been recruiting friends of mine to speak to the group. I somehow managed to get Moshe Milman, the CEO of Applitools to the group. Angie Jones, via web conference spoke live from Twitter's San Francisco office. Sauce Labs is now a major sponsor.

Are you in the Boston area? Do you do QA, SQA, automated testing, manual testing? Come and join us!

And make sure to follow us on Twitter, @MoT_Boston! I run the Twitter feed, too. I try to keep it entertaining. And while you are at it, follow me, on Twitter, @tjmaher1!

Happy Testing!

-T.J. Maher
Twitter | LinkedIn | GitHub

// Sr. QA Engineer, Software Engineer in Test, Software Tester since 1996.
// Contributing Writer for TechBeacon.
// "Looking to move away from manual QA? Follow Adventures in Automation on Facebook!"

Ahold Delhaize - Quincy rocks out on Quincy Center Plaza. Presenting: Stop & Rock

I have to say, I am really having a blast working for Ahold Delhaize - Quincy, as a QA Engineer on their Mobile Dev team. Why? They are a fun group to be around! Wednesday a group of the Mobile Dev team got together to give Quincy Center a free lunchtime concert.

How was it? Check it out!

Stories of Software Testing during the 1990s Dot.Com Boom

I've heard it said, by Gerald Weinberg, when forming  the first team dedicated to quality and testing for NASA’s Project Mercury in the late 1950s as Manager of Operating Systems Development, that every person on his quality team was a computer programmer. The software quality assurance engineer role as we now know it was never meant to be a non-coding one... Decades after, it just happened that way out of necessity.

Although it may be fitting, then, that the lines between development and QA are blurring together, as witnessed by developments at such companies as Microsoft, Google and Spotify, this provides little solace for us QA engineers who once again must navigate a new landscape that market forces have blown together, and confront the new job requirements.

Need your expert opinion for an article: What happens to the QA Role in a Continuous Deployment environment?

Hello, Dear Reader! I need your expert opinion on a TechBeacon article I am working on... Mind if I quote you?

I'm trying to research what happens to the QA Engineer role in software companies that use Continuous Deployment. What does the QA role morph into, and what skills would the QA Engineer need to develop in order to survive there? 

In business, there is always an urge to do more with less. Save money. Reduce headcount. Increase the bottom line. Improve quality. Trim bloated processes... And as with all businesses, so goes the software business. The problem is that here in Boston I worry that the "bloated process" is interpreted as the role of QA Engineer...

Back in March 2017 at a Ministry of Testing - Boston Meetup, I bumped into Andreas Grabner from Dynatrace, who mentioned something regarding Continuous Deployment that as a QA Engineer for twenty years sent shivers up my spine...

New Free SmartBear Webinar: "The State of Software Testing", Tuesday, August 22, 2017

A few months ago, a sponsor of the Ministry of Testing - Boston, SmartBear software, hosted a survey, "The State of Software Testing". Over five thousand people filled out the survey. The results are ready to be revealed!

"Did you know that 63% of testers are responsible for testing both the frontend and backend of their applications? Or that API tests are more likely to be automated than GUI tests?

"Discover what your peers are doing today in testing - the applications they’re building and the techniques they’re using. Learn more about modern test environments and how many teams are at the ‘tipping point’ of shifting left.

"SmartBear collected insights from thousands of developers, testers, and managers worldwide who are passionate about software testing. They openly shared their experiences, insights, and the challenges they face in their day-to-day roles.

"Join a panel of SmartBear experts as they walk through the 2017 ‘State of Testing Survey’ and divulge the key trends and observations we uncovered".

Go to https://smartbear.com/resources/webinars/state-of-testing-2017 and register today!

Happy Testing!

-T.J. Maher
Twitter | LinkedIn | GitHub

// Sr. QA Engineer, Software Engineer in Test, Software Tester since 1996.
// Contributing Writer for TechBeacon.
// "Looking to move away from manual QA? Follow Adventures in Automation on Facebook!"