Hi there,

You are invited to the launch meeting of the Brisbane chapter of the Agile Alliance Australia (AAA). Last year’s inaugural Agile Australia conference established the AAA and it is envisaged that local chapters will provide ongoing education and knowledge-sharing.

ThoughtWorks Global Testing Practice Lead Kristan Vingrys will be our guest speaker discussing the Changing Role of a Tester. Kristan has over 10 years experience in software testing encompassing a wide range of testing practices for both products and applications within a diverse range of industries. He has presented on agile testing and articles – including a chapter in the ThoughtWorks Anthology Book. He has been involved in solution delivery, coaching and mentoring teams with a focus on testing, agile processes and how the two compliment each other.

The Changing Role of a Tester
IT development is getting faster business now expects applications in months not years. Testing has to keep up and can not afford to be seen as a bottleneck. Traditional ways of testing no longer work with the rapid software development methodologies being used; there is no time to do big up-front test case design or multiple cycle test executions. Testers have to become more agile and embrace change while still providing quality information about the application being developed.

Testing on an agile project is different to a waterfall project; it is not just about doing waterfall in smaller iterations. Nor is it focused on finding as many defects as possible, instead the goal is to work as a team delivering quality working software that satisfies customer need. There are some new skills that testers will need to learn, but they do not need to throw away everything they already know. Changing the mindset about how, when and why of testing will help a tester adapt their existing skills to become an invaluable resource on any agile team.

After the discussion, we will go to the Belgian Beer Cafe Brussels (http://bit.ly/dC9e9G...) for drinks, food and networking for those interested.

Look forward to seeing you there!