STANZ 2011 - Timetable Wellington

9:00-10:10
Monday 29 August

Am I Creating Value With My Testing?
Keynote, Jonathan Kohl, Kohl Concepts (Canada)

Determine whether your tools and processes are helping you create value or if they are distracting you.

In this thought-provoking talk, Jonathan challenges all of us to look beyond the form, tools and techniques of our testing to examine how they are helping us create value in software, on projects and within teams -

I am often asked how to transform a good testing team into a great testing team. Individual testers want to know what skills or tools they should learn so they can improve. Managers want to know how to spot great testers during interviews as they hire and build teams. What is it that makes certain testers top performers?

After working with and observing hundreds of testers over the past decade, I've noticed that it is more than knowing the right tools, techniques and memorizing buzzwords - great testers understand value.

They see the value in their contributions to their teams, and in the software that they help produce. They also apply that standard to their own work.

In this thought-provoking talk, Jonathan challenges all of us to look beyond the form, tools and techniques of our testing to examine how they are helping us create value in software, on projects and within teams.

Jonathan focuses on understanding why we are developing software, for whom, and what our end users and team members value.

It's easy to get caught up with the newest trends and tools and measure our success based on their adoption, while forgetting about the basics. Jonathan helps you determine whether your tools and processes are helping you create value or if they are distracting you.

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10:30-11:30 Monday 29 August

Focusing with Clear Test Objectives
Keynote, Sharon Robson, Software Education (NZ)

Frustrated with your team's testing results—sometimes great, sometimes lacking? Do you consistently over promise and under deliver? If these situations sound familiar, you may be suffering from the ills of UCT (Unclear Test Objectives).

Clearly defining test objectives is vital to your project's success; it's also seriously hard to get right. Test objectives are often driven by habit - “Let's copy and paste the last set of objectives”; by lack of understanding - “Let's use whatever the requirements say”; or by outside forces - “Let's just do what the user wants.”

Sharon Robson shares the structured approach she uses to define test objectives, including key test drivers, approaches, processes, test levels, test types, focus, techniques, teams, environments, and tools.

Sharon illustrates how to measure, evaluate, compare, and balance these often conflicting factors to ensure that you have the right objectives for your test project.  

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11:30-12:30 Monday 29 August

Working with Remote and Distributed Teams
Keynote, Karen N. Johnson, Software Test Management (USA)

It would be great to be sitting together; having a chance to talk face to face might make our work easier, smoother, clarify some communications and maybe even speed up the work we're trying to complete. But our professional lives are just not that simple sometimes.

Frequently many of us work with other team members in various locations across our own country and even across the globe. Sometimes we work with small inconvenient time zone differences and other times, the time discrepancy is so significant we're perpetually catching each other only at the start or the end of each other's day.

Webcams, Skype sessions and instant messenger chats replace face to face conversations we would prefer to have. Getting “good” at communication skills can be difficult enough when we can see the other person and have a better chance to build a rapport, now add a large time zone gap and never having a chance to meet in person and we've really added a challenge to the project mix and overall project communications.

And as the time zone gaps get larger, we've likely introduced cultural and language differences to the conversation as well. It can be challenging enough to stay awake or get up early for a call but add a language difference and now we've made “good” communication a true challenge.

Using the Agile development methodology, co-location is the preference but even if your company or project moves to Agile, you can't move an office and you can't readily move people just because the development life cycle is switching from waterfall (or something else) to Agile.

Let's look at the time zone difference challenges and talk about solutions and ways to cope. Let's look at language barriers and find ways to improve how we communicate with each other.
Let's talk about how to get good at communication skills when we cannot see the other person.

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1:20-2:05 Monday 29 August

Testing User Stories: An Introduction 
Stream Session, Mike Lowery, Assurity Consulting (NZ)

Whether you have just gone Agile? or thinking about it, testing a "user story" or indeed understanding what a "user story" is can be confusing. This short talk aims to lift the lid on user stories and presents a view on how testers not only fit into an Agile team but perform an essential role to glue it together.  

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1:20-2:05 Monday 29 August

Heaven or Hell? A Critical Examination Of Software Testing Certification
Stream Session, Martyn Jones, Software Education (NZ)

Has ISTQB certification helped the software testing profession? The co-founder of ANZTB will discuss the good, the bad and the ugly of software testing certification, from both the perspective of the individual tester and that of the employer.

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2:10-5:00 Monday 29 August

(includes break)

Test Planning for Mobile Application Projects
Workshop Stream Session (2.5hrs), Jonathan Kohl, Kohl Concepts (Canada)

Why mobile?

• The post-PC era is here; the smart phone and tablet market is exploding, and people are rushing to support these devices with software. "Developers now start with mobile apps because that's where the growth is." - Google CEO, Eric Schmidt (Mobile World Congress, February 2011).
• If your company isn't supporting or creating mobile applications yet, they will be soon.
• It's different for mobile: Although some concepts transfer directly from desktop to mobile, testing mobile applications presents special challenges you must consider.

Start your mobile testing project with confidence! Learn his tricks of the trade for planning testing of mobile applications.

How many times have you created a test plan by filling in a template, changing some project details and adding in the new features? More times than you care to admit?

If you are starting out testing mobile applications, you might be tempted to approach testing as you always have.

But beware; testing mobile applications isn't just a copy/paste of how you have planned for testing desktop applications. There are important differences. Jonathan shares his experiences with testing mobile apps and how they affect planning.

Although some concepts transfer directly from desktop to mobile, testing mobile applications presents special challenges you must consider:

• Smaller screens and unique input methods that can cause physical strain on testers and slow down the testing effort.
• Less memory and processing power in the device mean tests often interfere with the application's normal operation.
• And, these smaller, transportable devices need to be taken care of differently. Network and communication plans need to be taken into account, as do location-based services such as geo-location capabilities and communication services.
• The portable nature of the devices is important in how they are used, and how they function.
• With the combinatorial explosion of device offerings becoming available all the time, how do you choose what platforms to test on?

Join Jonathan to learn his tricks of the trade for planning testing of mobile applications. Start your mobile testing project with confidence!

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2:10-5:00 Monday 29 August

(includes break)

The Strategy Part of a Test Strategy
Workshop Stream Session (2.5hrs), Karen N. Johnson, Software Test Management (USA)

Are you a test manager or test lead that needs to develop a test strategy? This session is about strategy - business strategy and test strategy. Strategy is about having a systematic plan of action. This workshop is not about writing a test plan. This workshop is about mapping out a tactical strategy for getting testing done.

Instead of focusing on testing or technical challenges we may have to address - this session focuses on tactical planning, as well as addressing the political obstacles for getting testing accomplished. We'll look at ways to work with what you have ‐ ways to work with the reality of what you face versus what you might wish you were working with - so that planning is effective.

Experiences on building test strategies, assessing ongoing changes and adjusting throughout a project will be shared and explored.

We'll review different ways to gain input from other team members. And different ways to build acceptance (and buy in) throughout your organisation and project team for the plans your team has built. And since strategy is about ongoing assessments and adjustments, we'll look at ways to continue to assess and monitor your teams testing efforts.

If you need to build a test strategy for a project, this workshop will offer you ideas on how to get started and how to think and plan strategically throughout a project.

Strategic planning is an indispensable skill for test leads and testers alike. Regardless of the technology you work with - strategic planning is necessary.

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6:30-8:00 Monday 29 August

10th Anniversary Conference Dinner

About Mai Chen  >>>

It's included in your conference booking. Come along for more networking and to hear a special guest speaker.

Mai Chen 
Dinner keynote (Wellington Only), Mai Chen, Founding Partner, Chen Palmer (NZ) (http://www.chenpalmer.com/)

Everyone loves lawyers. Always the life and soul of the party, there is no one better to enjoy a cold beer and interesting conversation with. Sometimes it's difficult to remember the old days when they were seen as objects of ridicule, stuffy old upper-class boring white men who spoke in a convoluted, superior manner. Then Mai Chen came along.

She arrived in New Zealand in 1970 from Taiwan. She was six years old and didn't speak any English. Today she is a prominent constitutional lawyer and founding partner of the law firm Chen Palmer, alongside forward NZ Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer. Mai Chen is also an Adjunct Professor in Commercial and Public Law at the University of Auckland Business School. She has ranked in Unlimited magazine's 50 top Influencers List and the Readers Digest list of the 85 Most Trusted New Zealanders.

Mai Chen has a unique point of view with experience in law, Government and business. She has advised many corporate and quasi-public sector organisations in New Zealand and Australia including Origin Energy Ltd, GlaxoSmithKline, Telecom, Sky, Southern Cross, Citibank and TVNZ. She tells business and Government not to believe the stereotypes they have each heard about the other, but to seize the opportunity to work together. After all they have the same ultimate goal; to grow the NZ economy. It's a principal every person in every company can relate to, how do we put our differences aside and achieve success?

Mai Chen is undoubtedly academically accomplished (just look at her company profile), but she is also a fun and engaging public speaker whom knows how to get CEOs, judges and ministers to listen to her. Come along to the Wellington STANZ 10th Anniversary Dinner to hear her speak, you'll never look at lawyers in the same way again.

9:00-10:00 Tuesday 30 August

The Future of Quality
Keynote, Goranka Bjedov, Facebook (USA)

This talk addresses the impact of changes such as Cloud, Open Source and Software Complexity on testing professionals and looks to assess where the future will take us. It summarises two years of research on this topic, discussions with hundreds of software testing professionals, and provides suggestions on possible solutions.

The world has changed.
I see it in the water.
I feel it in the Earth.
I smell it in the air.
Much that once was is lost,
For none now live who remember it.
- J.R.R. Tolkien

If you feel lost and confused, and even ready to give up - do not despair. First - you are not alone. There are many testing professionals struggling with the same issues. Second - change is constant. While you are trying to figure out what you (and your teams) should be doing today, the rate of change is increasing exponentially. Third - things will get worse (before they get better). Even if you are currently offering a product that does not rely on cloud services or is based on open sourced code, there is a start-up somewhere, working out a cheaper solution to your offering. Cloud and open source are here to stay because they provide cheaper and faster way to deploy products and reach customers.

Software services have entered the infinite complexity era - where it is impossible to understand what any single layer does. At the same time, customer expectations have aligned with what is available - while they certainly would not object to higher quality, they are unwilling to pay for it (in numbers large enough to matter), and would strongly object to any delay in shipping or deploying new features. Coincidentally, this change can be seen outside of our field as well.

Think of this talk as a courtesy invitation to the wake of IEEE 829 (829 Standard for Software Test Documentation) - long has it lived and restricted how we did our work. May all the test cases, specifications, plans and procedures rest in peace.

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10:20-11:20 Tuesday 30 August

Test Process Improvement: Testers Get Out of Your Cave!
Keynote, Jan Jaap Cannegieter, SYSQA (Netherlands)

Only by involving stakeholders outside of test processes will an improvement in the test processes be accomplished. The process areas we as testers can fully control are pretty mature. The process areas where we need other stakeholders like project management and general management are less mature. Consider results of Test Maturity Model (TMMi) Assessments and learn that if we want to make testing more mature, we have to get out of our cave.

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11:40-12:25 Tuesday 30 August

From New Zealand to Bangalore: A Case Study on a Remote Test Team 
Stream Session, Chris Stapleton, ANZ New Zealand (NZ)

In this case study we look at the successful addition of our Bangalore based test team, part of the New Zealand Enterprise Testing Team.  What are the challenges?  What works, what doesn't.  What tips and tricks have we learnt?

We will touch on the following topics:

Setting up the team:

• Who is involved.
• How to bring two international teams together.
• Legal aspects you needed to consider.
• What you need to plan for.
• Recruitment - how we undertook this, differences between the countries. 

Business as Usual:

• Time zone differences.
• How the work flows between teams.
• Escalation.
• Cultural Differences - what do we need to take into account.
• Communication - nuances, communication options (how to bridge the distance between the teams).
• How to maintain success 

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11:40-12:25 Tuesday 30 August

Software Cartography: Building a Test Plan Using Heuristics, Mind Maps, and Test Charters
Stream Session, Aaron Hodder, Metra (MetService) (NZ) 

Creating test plans can be a daunting task, especially when time is short. "We need you to test this application. Oh, and we go live next Monday."

How can you create a plan to test that is accountable, transparent, and structured, yet lightweight enough so that it can be rapidly edited? A plan that will be quickly understood by developers, project managers, other stakeholders, and any new testers that may be brought on to help out?  And not only that, but a plan that can be created quickly, using as little as possible of that precious time?

In this talk, I'll present a solution derived from knowledge and techniques developed and used with the context-driven school of software testing.  I'll also show how mindmapping software can be a cheap and lightweight, but powerful tool in the tester's toolbox. 

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1:20-3:50 Tuesday 30 August

Testing Skills: How to Find and Develop Skilled Testers
Workshop Stream Session (2.5hrs), Goranka Bjedov, Facebook (USA)

Joel Spolsky of JoelOnSoftware wrote on April 30th 2000: “With testers, like programmers, the best ones are an order of magnitude better than the average ones.” I could not agree more with that statement. But, over the years, I have seen organisations failing to hire good testers or failing to help them develop to their full potential. I have seen good testers leave companies en masse, and move to different jobs.

This workshop will address the following questions:

• What are the characteristics and skills of good software testers?
• How do you check/interview a person for testing position?
• What types of people make bad testers?
• How do you develop potential, if you do not have experienced team?

This workshop is a result of industry observations and experiences. Additionally, it will introduce some simple methods of checking if a person has a developer or a tester mindset. And, finally, it will provide you with a list of topics, games and exercises to sharpen the skills and increase effectiveness of your current team.

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1:20-3:50 Tuesday 30 August

TMMi (Test Maturity Model integrated): Valuable Practice with Quick Scans
Workshop Stream Session (2.5 hrs), Jan Jaap Cannegieter, SYSQA (Netherlands)

We all aim at improving our test processes. Learn how you can easily run Quick Scans from the TMMi across a number of key areas to gauge your levels, benchmark and discover where to focus your efforts.

During the workshop you'll have an introduction to the basics of TMMi, the history and structure, a comparison between TMMi and other test process improvement models. Most importantly you'll learn how to execute TMMi-based Quick Scans with an easy-to-use tool.

This is a hands-on, interactive session covering the tool and technique. You'll look at key aspects the scans cover, discussing the outcomes and how to get the most out of Quick Scans to benefit your improvement programme.

This session is applicable to all organisations and test groups. The Quick Scan tool is independent and provides visibility into improving your test processes.

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4:10-4:50 Tuesday 30 August

The Panel 
Closing Conference Session

Join us for a lively and interactive panel discussion on software testing issues. This is a chance to ask the experts your questions, as well as to pick up last minute testing tips.