QR Episode - Michael Bolton (Part I)

Heya – Finally found time to spill some tea with one of my favorite people in the testing industry, Elizabeth Zagroba. We cover off all the essentials from moving into a technical testing role, idealism, and our favorite musical theater. Enjoy!

Very happy to dusting off the QR Podcast with my pals Fiona Charles, Dan Billing, Ash Coleman, and our returning champion Michael Bolton to discuss ethics in technology, the responsibilities of software testers, and all that “big brother” noise lately about contact tracing apps in the age of COVID-19.

Really enjoyed this panel session talking about all things test automation with Angie Jones, Bas Dijkstra, Paul Grizzaffi, and Ashley Hunsberger. Check us out discussing managing business expectations, what to look for in test automation engineers, planning for maintenance and playing a couple rounds of "Rate that Vendor Claim". Enjoy!

Back for part two of our discussion, is my good friend, Michael Bolton. Michael has been consulting and training people on software testing all over the world and is the co-author with James Bach of Rapid Software Testing. Join us as we talk about training testers, community leadership, and common problems all testers face. Enjoy!

What more can I say about Michael Bolton. Michael has been consulting and training people in software testing all over the planet for as long as I’ve been in this business. When he's not traveling around the world teaching Rapid Software Testing, he's writing, speaking, and consulting about all things software quality. Check out the first half our our chat as we discuss testing and checking, semantic arguments, and what's it gonna take for people to finally take software quality seriously! Enjoy!

Writing, podcasting, running conferences, keynoting, workshops - is there anything Rob Lambert doesn't make look "blazingly simple"? Check out the newest QR Podcast where Rob and I catch up on testing, moving into management, his new company Cultivated Management, and how to strike a balance in your career and life. Enjoy! 

Jeff Perkins is the Chief Marketing Officer QASymphony. Prior to that, he's spent time in senior marketing and sales roles at PGi and AutoTrader.com, and previously worked on some of the biggest brands in the world Volvo, HBO, Sirius Satellite Radio, Michelin, Office Depot and Hasbro. We had a great time talking about the testing tool market, what clients want out of testing, developing your own personal brand, and what's behind some of those unverifiable vendor claims! Enjoy!

Karen Johnson has had a fantastic career working, consulting, and speaking all over the globe about software testing and quality. I always enjoy speaking with her whenever I get the chance and then trying (and failing) to mimic her calm, reasoned approach to deal with problems through storytelling. Listen in as Karen flips the script and asks me some questions as well as discusses the state of the testing business, management consulting, storytelling, her new role at Jamf and what really pisses her off! Enjoy!

What more can I say about Jerry Weinberg than hasn’t already been said? He’s been consulting and writing for over 50 years, including seminal works like The Psychology of Computer Programming, Perfect Software, and The Secrets of Consulting. In our business of software testing, he has influenced ways of thinking about quality, value, and the role of testing in software development. Check out Jerry and I (and his ringing phone!) discussing leadership, training, the state of software testing, and how to remain relevant after 60 years in this business. Enjoy!

Always enjoy catching up system performance guru, bon vivant, and one of the nicest guys in our business, Mark Tomlinson. Aside from discussing his responsibility for getting this "podcast" interview series started, we have an extending discussion on "thought leaders" and expertise, innovation, ethics, and whats with all those "boring" testing conferences! (FWIW I had to cut over 30 mins of laughing, joking, and cross talk at the beginning and end of this!) Enjoy part one!