6 Agile Software Testers that are changing the industry! | Part 1

From software testers and quality engineers to coaches, meet the people committed to shifting the software testing industry. One thing that they all have in common is the urge to share their knowledge and continue helping others. Connect with these people and get inspired!

???? Chris Stone ????

The Virtual Agile Coach, Chris Stone, is an energetic advocate for continuous improvement. With over a decade of experience, Chris is a sought-after speaker, podcaster, and trainer, inspiring others to embrace creativity in their pursuit of excellence.

Contributions to the Community:

• With a big online community, Chris consistently shares valuable insights and fosters discussions within his online community. Offering over 100 freely accessible retro templates covering various topics, from Barbie's motives to Netflix or Music Retro, Chris's creativity and knowledge sharing makes him a standout contributor.

Chris was part of the AgileTD 2023, and the feedback from his talk was incredibly positive, prompting requests for him to take the main stage. We were deeply moved by the community's enthusiasm! As a result, he has been selected as a keynote speaker for AgileTD 2024!

?? Ashley Hunsberger

With the philosophy of “People First,” Ashley drives her commitment to prioritizing the growth of individuals within the tech community. Ashley is an engineering leader with over 20 years of experience in leadership, testing, and data analysis.?

Contributions to the Community:

• Through blogging and speaking at international conferences, she has been able to share her passion for diversity and inclusion in the industry.
• She is a member of the Selenium Project Steering Committee.

How she evolved in her career, her constant thirst for learning more as well as her diverse experiences are only a few of the reasons why we welcome her as a keynote speaker at #AgileTD for the second time.?

?? Laveena Ramchandani

An experienced test manager, coach, and mentor with over 10 years of experience in the IT industry, working with various clients and domains, such as retail, insurance, residential, transport, and aviation.

Contributions to the Community:

• She volunteers for the British Computer Society, supporting people in finding the best career path.
• Laveena was a finalist for the Digital Star Award 2022 at the Everywoman in Technology Awards.

We are glad to welcome Laveena as one of our keynote speakers. Her passion and dedication to testing and contributing are outstanding. Her expertise in the new Central European Accessibility regulations that will apply in 2025 is indispensable for our main stage this year. She will also have a dedicated tutorial and lead a 2-day Deep Dive track on Accessibility.

?? Paul Holland

Paul went from computer sciences to helicopter pilot to software tester. He brings 27 years of experience in software testing and test automation. Paul is an expert on improving test reporting, visualizing test coverage, planning and recording exploratory testing, and much more.

Contributions to the Community:

• He constantly contributes to conferences, leading various session formats while bringing the community together.
• Paul is one of four Rapid Software Testing course facilitators.

His innovative ideas are refreshing, and his ability to share on-point knowledge ad-hoc is unique. We look forward to an entertaining keynote on test automation this year.

?? Emily Bache

As a technical coach and software developer, Emily has over 25 years of software development experience and has gained skills with Python, Java, Scala C#, and C++.

Contributions to the Community:

• She published two books, "Technical Agile Coaching with the Samman Method" and "The Coding Dojo Handbook.”
• Emily Bache’s YouTube channel has over 3k followers and 30 videos. She uploads insightful videos regularly, and her online community keeps growing constantly.
• She developed the “Samman” method, which involves short, frequent training sessions and a whole-team ensemble working on realistic tasks to practice new working methods.

Her unique and fun ways of educating software testers have greatly impacted our community. Therefore, we look forward to seeing her doing her magic on the big Agile Testing Days stage.

?? Lena Pejgan Nystr?m

Lena brings 25 years of experience. After a decade of coding, she found her heart in testing. Today, she focuses on building organizations and growing people rather than the software itself, but testing still remains ingrained in her soul.

Contributions to the Community:

• Lena has mentored junior testers in the different teams at several workplaces.
• Member of the Swedish Association for Software Testing and IT-h?gskolan (Board for the testing education)
• Author of “Would heu-risk-it”

Her creativity, her out-of-the-box thinking as well as her passion for sharing her experiences with the community, and her outstanding ability to get to the heart of a matter effectively made us invite her back on the Agile Testing Days stage.?

Let us know in the comments below If you have had the pleasure to meet any of the wonderful people mentioned above, and subscribe for more insights about the software testing community.??

Free Resource Spotlight from and by our Community

??? Videos:

• When developers say writing tests slow them down - Agile Testing Fellowship
• Software Design Mastery - Emily Bache

?? Articles:

• Autoethnographic research made me look at testing from a new angle - Jenna Charlton
• Addressing a node in XML - Stephan K?mper
• What DevOps culture means to me – and how you can help it grow - Lisa Crispin

?? Free Webinars and Meetups

• Online Webinar, February 29 CI/CD - Myths and Misconceptions with Micha Kutz & Bart Knaack
• Onsite Meetup in Hamburg, March 6. Agile Testing After Work

Important Dates -? the Agile Testing Days

• Super Early Bird Discount: Save up to 525€ on your ticket! Available until April 26th, 2024
• Agile Testing Days 2024: November 19 - 22, 2024