Introduction: below you will find my very first official article submission. After a couple of tweeks I ended up submitting it to the STPCon Social Media director and so we'll see how it's received. Regardless, I had fun writing it and whether or not they choose to use it or not, I am throwing it on here for the world to see.
Enjoy, and feel free to leave feedback! I love hearing what my readers have to say! :)
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I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a “noob” when it comes to the technology conference scene. In fact, with the exception of a few local Agile conferences I have attended over the years, I have steered clear of them up to this point. There always seems to be a reason not to go. Whether it be the money, the time away... the never-ending stack of emails that continually builds up just thinking about leaving it to tend to itself for a few days… *Shudder*
I was forever coming up with excuses not to attend and they always seemed to work... until now...
The opportunity to attend STPCon 2010 presented itself at perhaps the perfect moment in time for me. As a QA Manager in a fast growing organization, trying to keep up with the demands that are my reality in a modern day IT shop, I have been a bit down in the dumps about my personal career choice and have even had moments where I find myself daydreaming of a simpler life where my days are filled with nothing more complex than flipping burgers on a hot griddle, or serving hot coffee to a crowd of smiling faces as the words, "Would you like fries with that?" leave my smiling, happy mouth...
Yes… it was that bad.
Needless to say, I was looking for inspiration, for a glint of hope that would serve as a reminder to why I chose Quality as a career to begin with, and why I continue to make it my focus day in and day out.
What I found at STPCon 2010 was the “breath of fresh air” I had been searching for. With a multi-track format that covered perspectives from the most entry level testers to management and beyond, the conference kicked off with a great introductory session presented by Ross Smith, the Director of Test for Microsoft, discussing the concept of Productivity Games in the QA realm as a means to mitigate risk by diversifying testing efforts… essentially getting more eyes on the product sooner. It was a topic that stemmed quite a few discussions and debates that continued throughout the week. Think of it people... wouldn't it be cool to turn our job into a giant game? Ok, well, perhaps it's not completely realistic in some settings... but it was an awesome concept and did challenge me to come up with ideas on how to apply it to the environment I'm in.
A session that piqued my interest from the moment I laid eyes on it was the “Testers! Get Out of the Quality Assurance Business” delivered by Michael Bolton. I actually thought I might hear some encouragement on how to take the skills I have learned and apply them to the whole "flipping burgers" scenario I wrote about above... However, instead of encouraging a drastic career change, Michael served up a refreshing perspective on the role of QA in a software project and on how powerful it can be to simply re-direct our efforts into activities that support exploration, learning and finding the problems sooner as a service to the entire team’s efforts as opposed to taking on the daunting (and often unrealistic) task that is “assuring quality”.
Judy McCay’s session entitled, “People are not Widgits!” highlighted some great advice on how to find the highest quality team members, and more importantly how to keep these critical team members and ensure their individual success (I'm not gonna lie... I took this one to heart... I rather like my team members and I'd like them to stick around for a bit). It also shared some great tips on strategies for building teams for the future and not just for the current needs… something I’m very excited to take back as I look at growing my team.
Browsing through the calendar of events for the week though, I realized rather quickly that the possibilities for learning were far greater than I was going to be able to take in as a single person. Oddly enough, visions of cloning myself came to mind, well, that and I was more determined than ever to make sure I brought my team with me the next time. However, as a short term strategy, I decided to diversify my experience by selecting a few sessions completely outside of my normal area of interest and focus. One of which was a wonderful bit on “Load Testing in The Real World”, presented by Michael Gzeiszperger who quickly proved himself, not only an authority, but a visionary in the arena of load testing.
Matt Heusser’s hands-on workshop entitled, “Hands-on Quick Tests” was nothing less than pure awesomeness. I actually love this concept of Hands On Workshops. For us tactile people, there is nothing more fun than getting in a room with fellow geeks and hammering away and projects that challenge the mind. I had a great time playing with the different test scenarios and Matt provided a plethora of great ideas for getting the most “bang for the buck” with very direct and strategic testing methods.
One of the more controversial sessions I attended was on, “Metrics: A key to Success” delivered by Kim Mahoney. It served as a great example of the different perspectives out there as well as the passion that exists in the people who make up the world of Quality Assurance. There were a number of very poignant questions raised and it opened up a world of discussion on the topic of metrics and the overhead and ROI associated that come along with them.
The keynotes from both Kelly Vria, and Marc Scharenbroich were pure magic. Kelly spoke to the group on the “Top Ten Leadership Skills: Surviving in the 21st Century”. It truly felt like this keynote was tailor made for me and was the kick in the pants I needed to renew my commitment to “do what I already know”. Mark’s keynote, “Nice Bike: Fueling Performance with Passion” gripped the entire audience and had us rolling in laughter one moment and silently on the verge of tears the next as he re-hashed stories that showed just how critical it is for us to connect with the world, and more importantly, the people around us. The thing that struck me most about Mark, was his interaction with the audience. Although he was speaking to a crowded room with hundreds of people present, he had a way of speaking directly to you individually. Powerful to say the least! Plus, he told me I had great hair so that also won him some points. ;)
All in all, STPCon 2010 proved beyond the shadow of a doubt, that if you get enough people with a passion for quality, lock them into a large banquet area for a week, and fill them with endless amounts of caffeine and treats, nothing but great things will come of it. With a perfect balance of technical, strategic, and leadership content, as well as a program that was well planned to support plenty of moments between sessions to come together, meet new people, and share our experiences and ideas with one another, it proved to be exactly what I needed.
I came to STPCon searching for inspiration… Not only did I leave inspired but with a new found respect for this amazing community made up of people just like me, who have made quality our business… our passion… the people who strive every day to make the world of technology a much happier part of the human experience.
I can’t wait for next year.
