STPCon Spring 2013 – San Diego, CA

The breathtaking Sheraton San Diego Hotel & Marina was home to Software Test Professionals Conference & Expo, April 22 – 25, 2013. 40 breakout sessions and 4 pre-conference workshops in 6 comprehensive tracks offered attendees a variety of opportunities to learn cutting edge solutions to challenges faced by testing professionals every day. An insightful keynote panel consisting of Bob Galen, Dr. Cem Kaner and Rex Black spoke to the most likely impacts of an unpredictable economy, the growth of technical devices, and an exploding number of apps on software test organizations.

Conference Program: Tracks, Sessions, Speakers & Presentations:

Track: Leadership Perspectives for Testers

Understanding the business side of testing is as important as amplifying our approaches and techniques. In this track you will learn how to effectively lead diverse test teams, communicate with stakeholders, and advocate for testing. This track includes topics related to building test teams, leading business testers, handling the challenges of remote teams, communicating the value of testing, and using metrics in the decision making process.

Track: Test Strategy, Process and Design

Before you begin testing on a project, your team should have a formal or informal test strategy. There are key elements you need to consider when formulating your test strategy. If not, you may be wasting valuable time, money and resources. In this track you will learn the strategic and practical approaches to software testing and test case design, based on the underlying software development methodology. This track includes topics related to developing a test strategy, test estimation, risk management and data management.

Track: Performance Testing

Performance Testing is about collecting data on how applications perform to assist the development team and the stakeholders make technical and business decisions related to performance risks. In this track you will learn practical skills, tools, and techniques for planning and executing effective performance tests. This track will include topics such as: performance testing virtualized systems, performance anti-patterns, how to quantify performance testing risk, all illustrated with practitioners’ actual experiences doing performance testing.

Track: Test Automation

Which tests can be automated? What tools and methodology can be used for automating functionality verification? Chances are these are some of the questions you are currently facing from your project manager. In this track you will learn how to implement an automation framework and how to organize test scripts for maintenance and reusability, as well as take away tips on how to make your automation framework more efficient. This track includes topics related to test automation architecture, continuous integration, agile automation, and what other tasks you need to perform after you have designed your framework and scripted your test cases.

Track: Agile Testing

More and more software development organizations are “going Agile.” This track will help participants understand how they can fit traditional test practices into an Agile environment as well as explore real-world examples of testing projects and teams in varying degrees of Agile adoption. This track will include topics related to challenges in Agile testing, utilizing Agile testing techniques, coaching an Agile test team, and using games to internalize Agile principles and practices

Track: Mobile Application Testing

The rapid expansion of mobile device software is altering the way we exchange information and do business. These days smartphones have been integrated into a growing number of business processes. Developing and testing software for mobile devices presents its own set of challenges. In this track participants will learn mobile testing techniques from real-world experiences as presented by a selection of industry experts. Topics in this track include techniques for mobile testing, the latest trends affecting mobile testing and a framework to manage mobile testing.