Conference Presentations

The Habits of Highly Effective Testers

You've gone to class and learned about the latest testing tools and techniques. You feel academically enriched and ready to change the world. But has all this preparation truly equipped you to become an effective tester? Revisit the fundamental habits that are the essence of effective testers. Discover how these habits have become the foundations from which great testers draw their seemingly innate ability to find the important bugs quickly.

Andy Overly, NetIQ Corporation
It Depends: Deciding on the Correct Ratio of Developers to Testers

Some people think there is a specific answer to the question, "What is the correct staffing ratio for developers to testers in a software development organization?" Usually, though, the only right answer is, "It depends." The answer you need depends on your situation: what you are doing, how quickly you are trying to do it, the culture you work in, and the results you desire and can tolerate. Explore the analysis involved to decide on your correct staffing ratios.

Johanna Rothman, Rothman Consulting Group, Inc.
Beyond the Bug Battles

It is too easy to fall into fruitless battles over bugs. In many cases, the dispute really comes down to the fact that customers and developers have different ideas regarding what counts as a defect. Testers, on the other hand, are often stuck in the middle. The solution isn't to decide who's right but to find a way to acknowledge the different perspectives. In this presentation, learn two methods for increasing mutual understanding-helping testers and developers work together to create software of which they can be proud.

Bret Pettichord, Tivoli Systems
Outsourcing the Software Testing Effort: A Negotiating Checklist

This presentation raises several of the issues involved in partial or complete outsourcing of the software testing effort. Attorney Cem Kaner presents his negotiating checklist, including how to evaluate the costs, benefits, and risks of test outsourcing. Learn how to effectively use an outsourcer's staff with your testing projects.

Cem Kaner, J.D., Ph.D., Florida Tech
Manage Testing by the Numbers

Telcordia's Software Quality Assurance Testing Organization Business Model was developed to assist its SQA Testing Management Team in becoming more effective and productive in managing SQA testing. Learn how the implementation of this model can help raise the overall technical expertise of your test management team.

Sharon Burrell, Telcordia Technologies
Equilibrium in Managing Outsourced Testing

Even organizations with internal QA departments often have to rely on outsourced testing resources for some jobs. The first time you do this, you may make a lot of mistakes as well as learn a great deal. Jeff Jewell relates the lessons learned from his company's first experience in managing a project with contract testers. Learn what you can do to get the most from external testers and ensure that the quality of the product meets your internal expectations.

Jeff Jewell, Navigant International Inc.
Managing Business Dynamics for Software Developers

Managing a software development project is a complex mix of many forces--market expectations, the development process, product legacy, people skills, timelines, and budget. While several of these factors may be independent or even uncontrollable, they need to be factored together for success. This is the ultimate challenge of a development manager. Using several scenarios of market and production evolution, Ram Chillarege illustrates these business dynamics. Learn to manage business dynamics through strategies while avoiding misconceptions and common traps.

Ram Chillarege, IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center
Management of Outsourcing--How to Avoid Common Mistakes

One of the most challenging areas of software management is encountered in the first year after an outsourcing contract is signed. Carol Dekkers discusses the actions that can be taken by both implementation teams to ease the transition and to achieve outsourcing success. Learn of the common mistakes made involving personnel, measurement, and expectations, and obtain recommendations to increase the transition to a successful partnership.

Carol Dekkers, Quality Plus Technologies, Inc.
Internet Product Delivery: Creating Quality at the Speed of the Web

Based on an operations perspective, Richard Martin shares his experiences with an e-commerce company in the areas of project planning, quality assurance, release management, and project delivery. Learn how the e-commerce market differs from other enterprise applications and which "best practices" make the most sense. Explore the most effective ways to manage change at Web speed.

Richard Martin, Calico Commerce
Measuring the Complexity and Impact of Design Changes

Mike Libassi discusses how to use the Weighted Stability Index (WSI) Metrics Model, an adaptation of a U.S. Army method, to measure system design changes and the impact to software releases. Both the original method and the WSI model will be presented, as well as customization, results interpretation, and implementation. Learn how to automate this model into current office technology, like Microsoft Excel and Access.

Mike Libassi, Intel Corporation

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