Blog Posts
I have strong (loosely held) opinions about quality!
This is where I share what I think about testing, quality engineering, leadership and AI in development. Some posts are practical, some are reflective and all of them come from my real experiences working with real engineering teams.
If something here resonates with you (or you think I’ve got it wrong) then reach out and let’s discuss. That’s the whole point.
Recent Posts
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Start with the risks, not the method
In this post I set out how looking at risks before approaches can improve your test approaches.
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I was an AI sceptic (and I’ve got the old blog posts to prove it)
I was an AI testing sceptic and wrote it down. Here’s why garbage in, garbage out is good news for…
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Why did testing miss this… Because You didn’t set a risk appetite
In this post I describe how setting a risk appetite is crucial for defining quality expectations in organisations. Without this…
Quality Engineering
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Why did testing miss this… Because You didn’t set a risk appetite
In this post I describe how setting a risk appetite is crucial for defining quality expectations in organisations. Without this…
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Change Failure Rate and AI Adoption: What Your DORA Dashboard Misses
Most teams can’t actually measure change failure rate. Here’s why that foundational gap turns AI-driven delivery speed into a hidden…
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AI readiness radar: Framework for engineering teams
In this post I describe a model for engineering teams to use in assessing their readiness for AI adoption safely.
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Creating a Playwright framework with AI
A Playwright E2E test framework using AI was developed, achieving near-complete workflow coverage with minimal team involvement and effective reviews.
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Guest Blog: You don’t want Quality Engineers
The blog discusses the challenges faced by Quality Engineers, emphasizing communication, accountability, and the need for a collaborative quality culture.
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You’re not ready for Quality Engineering
Quality professionals must adapt to engineering’s evolving needs to rebuild trust and credibility, ensuring valuable collaboration and impactful influence.
AI & LLM
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I was an AI sceptic (and I’ve got the old blog posts to prove it)
I was an AI testing sceptic and wrote it down. Here’s why garbage in, garbage out is good news for…
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Yes you can run exploratory testing with ai
AI can run your exploratory testing, but only as well as the charter, risk appetite and heuristics you give it.…
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AI readiness radar: Framework for engineering teams
In this post I describe a model for engineering teams to use in assessing their readiness for AI adoption safely.
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Creating a Playwright framework with AI
A Playwright E2E test framework using AI was developed, achieving near-complete workflow coverage with minimal team involvement and effective reviews.
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Quality Engineering with AI
Quality engineering must adapt to AI’s influence, focusing on pragmatic end-to-end testing and clear requirements to ensure robust software delivery.
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Using AI to help teams shift testing left
Teams are leveraging AI to enhance testing processes, improve quality, and boost engineering velocity through user story evaluations.
Exploratory Testing
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Yes you can run exploratory testing with ai
AI can run your exploratory testing, but only as well as the charter, risk appetite and heuristics you give it.…
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Testing Doesn’t Just Happen at the End
In this post I say that testing isn’t a phase, it’s something that happens everywhere in your delivery.
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How to Involve Developers in Exploratory Testing
Asking developers to start exploratory testing can be hard; many testers haven’t had the opportunity to practise this type of…
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100% Tested is not 100% Covered
The misconception that 100% test coverage ensures a fully tested system can lead to false confidence among stakeholders. Various forms…
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Testers – Don’t wait to be asked
The whole point of being a tester is the ability to not only find but share information to teams. In…
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Don’t wait to test – Go explore!
In this post I advocate for exploring the unknown rather than testing what we already know.
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Setting your own Testing Scope to Work With Uncertainty
I describe how I work out what to test when nobody explicitly tells me.
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Why adhoc testing is not exploratory testing
Exploration shouldn’t be just clicking about, discover how we can structure it to add more value.
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Ask Me Anything: Exploratory Testing
I answer your questions about exploratory testing in this post!
Strategy & Testing Skills
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Start with the risks, not the method
In this post I set out how looking at risks before approaches can improve your test approaches.
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Not having an Approach causes Problems in Your Testing
We all know what a test approach is, it’s that document that we write to say what we’re going to…
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In testing context is important
I was told my bar for quality was too high and it took me a few roles to work out…
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Using AI to help teams shift testing left
Teams are leveraging AI to enhance testing processes, improve quality, and boost engineering velocity through user story evaluations.
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You don’t need so many E2E tests (or do you?)
We’ve all seen the testing pyramid, a diagram that shows us that proportionally we should reduce the amount our larger…
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Is it really an edge case?
It’s a tale as old as time, as testers we raise a risk or a bug only to be told…
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14 Ways testers can be technical without writing code
We can sometimes forget that technical skills in testing isn’t just about automation. In this post I’m going to highlight…
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A Beginners Guide to API Testing
Let’s get technical with this introduction for how to test at te API layer.
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Presentation Usability (with Ramone the Testing Otter)
Learn how usability matters for your presentations and slide decks.
Coaching & Career
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Want to be a better Quality Engineer: Lose the Ego
To become a better Quality Engineer, prioritize humility, teamwork, and open communication over ego-driven competition.
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Quality Coaching Scenario: This code won’t take tests
In this post I’ll take a hypothetical testing scenario and then set out the thinking I’d take around it to…
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Quality Coaching Scenario: No testing happening
In this post I’ll take a hypothetical testing scenario and then set out the thinking I’d take around it to…
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Being a good senior tester means having an opinion
More than just measuring and sitting apart from the actual “goodness” of your product, a senior tester should be opinionated.…
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How to identify the right senior tester for your new Team / Company
NOT ALL TESTERS ARE THE SAME. This can make looking for and hiring a senior in your organisation very tricky.…
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Hiring a first QA into a startup – Why you need a senior
I’ve been the first QA hire and an early hire for start ups and engineering organisations. Here’s what I’ve seen…
Opinion Pieces
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Start with the risks, not the method
In this post I set out how looking at risks before approaches can improve your test approaches.
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Quality job titles matter… because they say something to other people
Job titles in the testing and quality community serve as essential marketing tools, helping us to tell others what we…
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Testers have to be the ones to advocate for quality
Testers have to be the ones speaking up for quality and THAT’S OKAY!
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A lack of standard (testing) terms hurts us all
A lack of standardized terminology in the testing industry complicates communication among testers, hiring managers, and other engineers. This discrepancy…
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Slow burn – Changing things takes time
One of the things that we’re not always taught, so can be under prepared for, is how speed of change…
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Being a good senior tester means having an opinion
More than just measuring and sitting apart from the actual “goodness” of your product, a senior tester should be opinionated.…
Diversity & LGBTQIA+
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I Get So Emotional – The time I got dismissed for being myself in engineering
I share how my queerness was used against me in an engineering role.
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I am proud
It’s Pride month, so in this post I call out some of the LGBTQIA+ engineers whose work you’re relying on…
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How Diversity and Inclusion can Improve Testing
In this post I talk about how our difference can be used as a quality heuristic.
Dungeons & Dragons
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Testers as Dungeons and Dragons Classes
In this post I imaging our D&D adventuring party as testers.
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Let’s charm our teams with Charisma testing
Testing doesn’t have to be all negative, instead use positivity to win people over!
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Dungeons and Dragons helped me become a better team member
In this post I set out the parallels I’ve found between playing Dungeons and Dragons and being a useful member…
Other Blog Posts
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Testing Flashcards
Here’s an updated collection of flashcards that I’ve been adding on LinkedIn.
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5 Tips for Starting a New Role as a Tester
New jobs are daunting. In this post I share the basics of what I do to land in a new…
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Making your messages more engaging
Let me queer eye for the project guy your messaging into something FABULOUS!
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Introducing Ramone our Testing Mascot!
It’s Ramone the Testing Otter, learn what he’s all about in this post.