Testing Peers
Testing Peers
2 Creators
2 Creators
Testing Peers is a growing community of ~60 peers in testing, software quality, agility, test leadership, engineering management, and broader software development. We’re united by a shared goal: to drive quality in everything we do within our workplaces and beyond. Through collaboration, accountability, and mutual support, we strive to elevate one another both professionally and personally.
The Testing Peers podcast is now expanding beyond its original four hosts, David Maynard, Chris Armstrong, Russell Craxford and Simon Prior, striving to represent the voices of a diverse and thriving community. Our inaugural in-person conference, PeersCon, launched in Nottingham in March 2024 and will return in March 2025, further solidifying Testing Peers as a not-for-profit, by testers, for testers initiative.
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Top 10 Testing Peers Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Testing Peers episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Testing Peers for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Testing Peers episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Outside Influences on Our Testing
Testing Peers
01/16/22 • 33 min
Hello and welcome to another episode of the Testing Peers podcast. In a show of our busyness recently, we chose our topic right before recording and it was decided on "Outside Influences to our Testing".
Before diving into the main topic, Russell asks us what our goals are for 2022 and we share everything from making a new role a success to reading more to even doing a handstand. "Peers Con" is mentioned too which is our conference we would love to find a way of running.
On the main topic, we discuss some of the things we experience outside of work which could provide an influence on our testing, Russell starts by talking about woodwork and this leads to a conversation about destructive testing which links to kids playing with toys for the first time. Parenting becomes a topic of discussion and how generally, kids will not do things in the way expected and will try things differently, this can link back to how users may do things in ways we don't expect. It then moves to talking about what happens if you give the user everything they request, does it actually meet the needs when they get the final product?
The peers cover several other topics such as scientific experiments, houses/architecture, Chinese whispers, apps we use regularly and more. What other topics do you find impact your testing? We'd love to hear from you!
Thank you for listening. Please do get in touch if you would like to know more or would like to give us feedback to help us improve and grow.
- [email protected]
- Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
- Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
- Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)
- We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores
- If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers
Saffron QA is a provider of recruitment and consultancy services, exclusively for the software testing industry.
You can find out more at https://saffronqa.co.uk/ or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/saffron-qa/
We’ve found Ben from Saffron QA to be a great partner who has signed up to the vision and values that we have set out in our Testing Peers charter and we hope that you will take the time to visit and connect with him.
2 Listeners
Welcome to the Testing Peers
Testing Peers
05/10/20 • 24 min
Thursday July 18th 2019 is a significant date in the short history of the Testing Peers.
Simon had finally convinced Russell, David and Chris to explore the possibility of podcasting together, and this was when the #testinpeerspodcast channel started in our Slack group.
We were more than half a year into our joined-up adventure and our output had so far provided us with a supportive and accountable peer group, but no output that would be visible to many.
There was a hunger to do more, my initial pitch to the others that I had invited to join me included the possibility of a blog or a conference paper, but I hadn’t considered a podcast.
We started the blog site, but not all of us are bloggers.
I grabbed ahold of the @testingpeers Twitter handle.
What could we do to continue our project?
Simon is a relentless force for spreading his word, and he has been blogging for a decade, he has spoken at conferences and appeared on various webinars and podcasts. He saw a niche in the market for the four of us to go and make our own.
Eventually, we relented and started to talk about the idea of what a podcast could look like.
We transitioned our initial Trello board with ideas for blogs, to those that could become podcast themes.
So welcome to our inaugural episode is an introduction to the four of us. We have some other material already recorded and we hope that we will get better at doing this, it is new, but I already am finding our regular Thursday night beers with the Testing Peers a real highlight to my week!
1 Listener
Leading 1 to 1s
Testing Peers
05/25/20 • 20 min
This time around the Peers talk about out positive and negative experiences on 1 to 1s and what has shaped the way we do them as leaders. As you’ll hear from the discussion, we all have different experiences.
We also discuss Simon's shirt choice. Is it Pink or Brown? Check the image out on our twitter!
1 Listener
Onboarding Testers
Testing Peers
10/24/21 • 33 min
Thank you for joining us again. On this episode, we discuss our experience with onboarding new members to our teams. We spend time talking about the good and bad things that have happened and suggest ideas to make the onboarding processes as smooth as possible.
Before diving into the main topic, David asks us to think back to times we have onboarded to travel somewhere. The peers all mention different holidays they have been on.
With onboarding, the peers start by discussing the importance of giving the new starter a buddy or the manager clearing their calendar to ensure they are available for the first few days. We also mention the importance of not setting too much of an expectation for work to be completed in the first few weeks.
Everyone has different needs for their onboarding and it's crucial we adapt as best as possible to give the new starter what they need.
The Peers share some of their own stories of onboarding experiences, both good and bad, showing the importance of getting off on the right foot when starting a new role.
I'm sure you all have your own stories of onboarding experiences, please feel free to share with us!
Thank you for listening. Please do get in touch if you would like to know more or would like to give us feedback to help us improve and grow.
- [email protected]
- Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
- Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
- Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)
- We're also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores
- If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers
Saffron QA is a provider of recruitment and consultancy services, exclusively for the software testing industry.
You can find out more at https://saffronqa.co.uk/ or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/saffron-qa/
We’ve found Ben from Saffron QA to be a great partner who has signed up to the vision and values that we have set out in our Testing Peers charter and we hope that you will take the time to visit and connect with him.
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Empowering teams
Testing Peers
06/07/20 • 21 min
For episode three, the Peers talk about their experiences around empowering teams, what has worked and what didn't.
We'd love you to get in touch, so email us at [email protected] or reach out to us on Twitter @testingpeers
1 Listener
Imposter Syndrome
Testing Peers
01/31/21 • 25 min
Welcome to episode 20 of the Testing Peers podcast.
In this episode, the Peers discuss something that we all are confronted with in life - imposter syndrome.
The Peers open by defining what we see imposter syndrome is and is not.
Terms like 'feeling out of depth', 'shame', 'new pupil at school' are used and we can all resonate with them.
We talk about our own experiences, both in starting new jobs and as attendees, or even speakers at conferences and meetups.
The conversation moves on to how we, as leaders, can help those new to our teams - be that documents, time spent with them, expectations etc.
The Peers then talk about that which we have imposter syndrome about, and ask each other and you, our listeners to help us be not only held accountable, but also encouraged and supported.
We really appreciate all the feedback that we have received and invite you to get in touch with us:
- [email protected]
- Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
- Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
- If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers
Saffron QA is a provider of recruitment and consultancy services, exclusively for the software testing industry.
You can find out more at https://saffronqa.co.uk/ or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/saffron-qa/
We’ve found Ben from Saffron QA to be a great partner who has signed up to the vision and values that we have set out in our Testing Peers charter and we hope that you will take the time to visit and connect with him.
1 Listener
30 Things Every New Tester Should Learn - 6 Years On
Testing Peers
01/15/23 • 42 min
elcome to another episode of the Testing Peers podcast, this time we have a slightly different show for you.
Regular host, Chris is joined by the wonderful Heather Reid, as we look back over the brilliant article Heather wrote back in 2017 - 30 Things Every New Software Tester Should Learn on the Ministry of Testing site.
Before we look back at Heather's article, we talk about anything from our past online that we might find a little cringey.
Then we review the article, written almost exactly six years ago, talking through all 30 tasks, and Heather provides some insight into each task, as well as where she would make changes, remove or replace any task.
We cover a lot of interesting topics, and below are links to some of the things we discuss.
- QA In Your Job Titles? - Ministry of Testing (The Club)
- Learning How to Learn: Powerful mental tools to help you master tough subjects - Coursera
- Making Work Visible: Exposing Time Theft to Optimize Workflow by Dominica Degrandis (Book via Amazon)
- Ministry of Testing - Go Pro!
- Team Guide to Software Testability: Better software through greater testability by Ash Winter and Rob Meaney (Book via Amazon)
- Fifty Quick Ideas to Improve Your User Stories by Gojko Adzic and David Evans (Book via Amazon)
- Starting Your Software Testing Career by Nicola Lindgren (Book via Leanpub)
- How Can I Test This? by Nicola Lindgren, Mike Harris, Suman Bala, Philip Wong, and Shawn Shaligram (Book via Leanpub)
- Testing Web APIs by Mark Winteringham (Book via Amazon)
- Contemporary Exploratory Testing by Maaret Pyhäjärvi (Book via Leanpub)
- Would Heu-Risk it? Tools, traps and weapons for Software Testing by Lena Wiberg (Book via Leanpub)
- Understanding where quality starts as a tester - Vernon Richards (via LinkedIn)
- Software Testing Heuristics: Mind The Gap! by Richard Bradshaw and Sarah Deery (via Ministry of Testing)
- Workroom Productions - Get Better at Software Testing
- Accessibility Testing 101 - Crystal Preston-Watson (Talk from TestBash San Francisco 2019, via Ministry of Testing PRO)
- Introduction To Accessibility Testing - Deborah Reid (Course via Ministry of Testing)
- The Big Test Theory - Ady Stokes
1 Listener
Testing Mindset
Testing Peers
02/13/22 • 34 min
Hello and thank you for joining us for another episode of the Testing Peers podcast.
This episode, the Peers are exploring the oft-spoken testing mindset.
Before we get into the main section, David asks the team of any examples of where their mindset has motivated them to successfully complete something.
Then we dive in.
Does the testing mindset even exist?
What is our interpretation of the testing mindset?
Can only people with the testing mindset test?
Can you teach the testing mindset?
Can anyone test?
We recap from previous episodes some of the characteristics of testing, and ask if they really are unique to testers.
Do we confuse characteristics with mindset?
A mindset can also be seen as arising out of a person's world view or philosophy of lifehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mindset
We look at what motivates us, what our values are, and in a moment of reflection ask if talking about testing means you're good at testing?
The Modern Testing Principles are once again referenced:
TWO - We accelerate the team, and use models like Lean Thinking and the Theory of Constraints to help identify, prioritize and mitigate bottlenecks from the system.Testers do less testing. Drive more quality. Developers do more testing. Testers teach and coach developers to write the smaller tests. Testers take on the larger initiatives around testing. Pairing experiences over solo work allow teams to find more in the code and bake quality in faster.
https://www.ministryoftesting.com/dojo/lessons/modern-testing-principles
And much much more.
Thank you for listening and we'd love your feedback on what we're doing here.
Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)
We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores
If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers
Saffron QA is a provider of recruitment and consultancy services, exclusively for the software testing industry.
You can find out more at https://saffronqa.co.uk/ or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/saffron-qa/
1 Listener
Testing Rants
Testing Peers
09/26/21 • 37 min
Hello and welcome to another episode of the Testing Peers. Our gloves are off this week and we don’t have a specific topic to discuss. Instead we allowed the conversation to flow wherever it took us, with the only point being that this was a chance for us to vent about any frustrations we may have within the testing world.
Before diving into the therapy session, we discussed non-testing frustrations during the pandemic (without getting political). We discussed things such as masks on public transport, gatherings in open spaces and scaremongering in the media. Can you feel the anger amongst us??
In the main discussions, we covered everything and anything that came to mind including:
- Hearing other peoples frustrations in the office
- Social Media Trolling
- Business perception of testing
- Job Titles
- Tools
- Cold emails from Tool Vendors and Recruiters
I think we all needed a lie down after this but we enjoyed getting it all off our chests
We’d love to know what you thought of this as an episode. Do you agree with any of our thoughts? Any other rants you wish to share?
Thank you for listening. Please do get in touch if you would like to know more or would like to give us feedback to help us improve and grow.
- [email protected]
- Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
- Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
- Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)
- If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers
Saffron QA is a provider of recruitment and consultancy services, exclusively for the software testing industry.
You can find out more at https://saffronqa.co.uk/ or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/saffron-qa/
We’ve found Ben from Saffron QA to be a great partner who has signed up to the vision and values that we have set out in our Testing Peers charter and we hope that you will take the time to visit and connect with him.
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Dream Jobs
Testing Peers
12/05/21 • 33 min
Hello and welcome to another episode of the Simon Show Testing Peers Podcast.
In this episode, the Peers talk about dream jobs.
Before we dive into the main topic, we talk about when we have treated ourselves to dream gifts.
From Back to the Future Lego, PlayStations, greenhouses, AC Cobras and coffee machines!
We begin talking about what our dream jobs were as children and then move on to what our dream jobs might be today.
The Peers even play with ideas down the line of a Testing Peers consultancy, or even our own conference "PeersCon".
The discussion moves on to cover our favourite parts of our current roles, we discuss key motivators and how the pandemic has changed things.
We mention Cassandra Leung's blog post 'The George Foreman Heuristic for Quality'.
The shape of what makes a dream job, it transpires, is more about people, culture, the product, the ability to have an impact and the aligning of the company's values to yours.
Side note – two of the Peers have recently moved into new houses and have had a few issues with their setups, we apologise for any audio issues that may have arisen in this episode.
Thank you for listening. Please do get in touch if you would like to know more or would like to give us feedback to help us improve and grow.
- [email protected]
- Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
- LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
- Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
- Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)
- We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores
- If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers
Saffron QA is a provider of recruitment and consultancy services, exclusively for the software testing industry.
You can find out more at https://saffronqa.co.uk/ or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/saffron-qa/
We’ve found Ben from Saffron QA to be a great partner who has signed up to the vision and values that we have set out in our Testing Peers charter and we hope that you will take the time to visit and connect with him.
1 Listener
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FAQ
How many episodes does Testing Peers have?
Testing Peers currently has 126 episodes available.
What topics does Testing Peers cover?
The podcast is about Management, Leadership, Software, Podcasts, Technology and Business.
What is the most popular episode on Testing Peers?
The episode title 'Outside Influences on Our Testing' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Testing Peers?
The average episode length on Testing Peers is 34 minutes.
How often are episodes of Testing Peers released?
Episodes of Testing Peers are typically released every 14 days.
When was the first episode of Testing Peers?
The first episode of Testing Peers was released on May 10, 2020.
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