Quality's next big thing. Are you in?

The golden age of quality is here. Plus, highlights of the previous week in the MoTaverse.

Quality's next big thing. Are you in? image
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Post TestBash Meetup at Ohso Social

The image shows a banner for "sembi iQ" with three cards below it. The first card is for "designwise" and says "AI-Powered Test Optimization" with "Available Now" below it. The second card is for "TestRail" and says "AI Test Case Generation" with "Coming in Q3" below it. The third card is for "XRAY" and says "AI Test Case Generation" with "Coming in Q3" below it. The background is a gradient of orange, pink, and purple with some sparkling shapes.

The Future of Intelligent Quality is Here

Smarter testing starts now with Sembi IQ, bringing AI-powered enhancements to TestRail, Xray, and Designwise.

 

Unlimited Membership. It's too good to miss!

Come for the certifications, stay for TestBash, Leading with Quality, Professional Membership and more! There's simply nothing else like it!

Our goal in the MoTaverse is to make it as easy as possible to be a part of anything and everything. One of the challenges we find people have is getting sign-off for budget. Unlimited Membership, once signed up, removes that barrier. Read more.

 

Time for a quality revival?

Rosie Sherry speaks with Jenny Bramble about titles, metrics, remote work, and the emotional weight of being a leader from a quality background. This is a conversation for those ready to lead in what Jenny calls a golden age of quality, where influence, care, and community are driving real change.

Learn from two leaders in quality

A screenshot from a video featuring two speakers, Rosie Sherry and Jenny Bramble, on a split screen, discussing mapping ecosystems. The left side shows Rosie Sherry, a person with short dark hair and glasses, wearing a black shirt, laughing. Behind them are various framed posters and a shelf with some small items. The right side shows Jenny Bramble, a person with long blonde hair and glasses, wearing a black top with a necklace. They are speaking, and behind them, there is a view of lush greenery, possibly indoors with many plants. The top of the image has the text "LEADING WITH QUALITY" on the left and a large question in white text: "DO YOU HAVE A STRATEGY FOR MAPPING ECOSYSTEMS OUT?" At the bottom center of the image, the text "MINISTRYOFTESTING.COM" is displayed in white. The background is a gradient of purple hues.
The image shows a dark purple background with a mountainous, starry landscape and some cartoon bug characters at the bottom. In the foreground, large white text asks: "WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO SOMEONE ABOUT TO JOIN A TEAM AS THE FIRST DEDICATED TESTER?" On the right side, there's a red and white rocket ship. Below the main text, there are some hand-drawn-style lines.

What advice would you give to someone about to join a team as the first dedicated tester? asks Demi Van Malcot. Joining a product team without prior dedicated testers can be challenging.

 

Slide from Marie Cruz’s talk showing a console output of soil moisture readings. When the soil is dry, the message says “Water the plant, Gabrielle!” and when the moisture level is sufficient, it says “All good” followed by a numeric value. Marie is visible smiling on the recording call.

A family STEM project: Learning monitoring and observability with your child (and a plant!). Recorded a brilliant talk with Marie Cruz — coming soon to Ministry of Testing!

 

An image with the title "JOB HUNTING IN 2025? ATTEND TESTBASH FOR FREE!" is prominently displayed in large white text on a purple background. In the top right corner, a green, cartoon-style UFO with two small black squares representing eyes is flying. Below the main title, there are eleven smaller, distinct images arranged in two rows. These are photographs from Testbash 2024. In the bottom left corner, there is a circular logo that says "TESTBASH BRIGHTON" with a stylised Ministry of Testing planet logo.

We understand that finding work can be tough, and we want to help you stay connected and up-to-date with the latest in testing and quality engineering. If you've been unemployed at any point in 2025 and would love to attend TestBash, this is your chance.

 

A distressed, three-eyed orange alien in a purple spaceship, with one hand on its head and the other on the controls. The spaceship is flying through a dark purple space filled with stars, with two comets streaking by and two planets visible in the background: a large yellow, cratered one on the bottom left and a smaller purple one on the top right.

From self-doubt to growth: My unusual journey into software testing by Amandine Douguedroit. Follow a personal journey of failure, growth, and rediscovery shaped by persistence and a supportive testing community.

 

The image is an advertisement for "TestBash Brighton" taking place on "1-2 October 2025" at the "Brighton Dome." The central text reads "SETTING COORDINATES FOR BRIGHTON". The design features a vibrant purple and green background. There's a large, stylized globe on the right side with a futuristic, green spaceship-like object piercing it. On the left, a golden circular logo with "TESTBASH BRIGHTON" written on it. Several smaller, green, flying saucer-like objects with cartoon eyes are scattered across the top and middle of the image. A white seagull wearing a small yellow helmet is flying near the globe.

TestBash Brighton 2025

On the 1st & 2nd of October 2025 we're back in Brighton for TestBash: the largest software testing conference in the UK. View ticket options.

 

Take care of quality

Take care of yourself, take care of your colleagues, take care of your team and good quality products normally come out the other end. Nicola Sedgwick shared this in 2016 and it still resonates now more than ever. She’s leading with quality at MoT’s dedicated LwQ day.

 

A "tester walks into a bar" meme shows three people smiling. The person on the left, wearing a black cap and an orange-brown jacket, has a beard and glasses, and is giving a thumbs-up. They are holding a small red box of Tic Tacs, and in front of them is a larger box of Tic Tacs. The two people to their right are partially visible, also smiling. The meme's text reads: "A TESTER WALKS INTO A BAR ORDERS A ROUND AND ENJOYS A DRINK WITH FRIENDS NOTHING BLOWS UP AND THE HAPPY PATH IS TESTED"

A tester walks into a bar.

I live here now.

Why can't I hold all these community stars?

 

The view from The Observatory

Stop Hiding My Controls: Hidden Interface Controls Are Affecting Usability

A lack of inspiration – Ideas for Community Sessions: Lean Coffee

The New Skill in AI is Not Prompting, It's Context Engineerings

TestBash 2024: My Top 10 Lessons Learned

Found a Bug in the Wild. Also, a Racist

Playwright v1.54.0 release notes

View more from The Observatory. 🛰️

 

A blue brick wall with neon-style graphics. In the center is a microphone icon, glowing in blue and magenta. Above, below, and to the sides of the microphone are several stylized planet icons with rings, some glowing in white, some in magenta, and some in light blue. Below the microphone, in white neon letters, are the words "THIS WEEK IN" stacked above "TESTING".

🎧 Performance reviews are like marmite Ep 98. Whether you dread your next review cycle or want ideas for making your work more visible, this episode offers honest stories, smart tactics, and a few Marmite moments that every tester will relate to.

 

The image shows a web browser window with "www.ministryoftesting.com" in the address bar. The main content area features a large "404 TALKS" logo, where the "0" in "404" is replaced by a red, cartoon-like character holding a microphone. Below this, in a large, bold font, is the title "Testing acceptance criteria and test cases" followed by "with Emily O'Connor" in a smaller font.

In this 404 Talk, Emily O’Connor walks you through a deceptively simple and powerful technique she uses to evaluate acceptance criteria and test cases and come up with alternative scenarios outside of the happy path.

 

The image shows a dark purple background with a white speech bubble in the center. Inside the speech bubble, a quote is written in white text: "A good tester is also a good tool selector. The ability to pick the right tool at the right time will enhance your success in the testing world." Below the quote, aligned to the right, is "- Rahul Parwal". In the bottom left corner of the image, there is a cartoon character with a grey body, black glasses, and a pink and purple brain. In the top right corner, there is a circular logo with a yellow border and a white background. Inside the logo, there is a stylized "MQT" in black text, with "MOTIVATED" written below it in smaller black text. There are also some subtle white star-like shapes in the background.

As Rahul Parwal puts it during the Software Testing Essentials Certificate (STEC), "The ability to pick the right tool at the right time will enhance your success in the testing world."

 

Thank a star with a star

“I just tried out the feature to award community stars - it IS a nice feeling!” – Lisa Crispin.

MoT Professional Members can now award community stars to fellow community members. We noticed an improvement in our well-being since dishing out community stars. Turns out giving stars makes you feel good! Send a message of support and gratitude.

+ Award a Community Star

 

A banner for "TESTBASH INSIGHTS: COMMUNITY JOURNEYS AND LEARNINGS" features white text on a deep purple, starry background with pink and white starbursts and a few shooting stars. Three green flying saucers with bugs piloting them are ascending from the bottom right towards the upper left.

TestBash Insights: Community Journeys and Learnings. Dive into a collection of blog posts where members of the Ministry of Testing community share their unique TestBash experiences and the invaluable lessons they've gained over the years.

 

Career growth zone

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👤 How to get the most out of your MoT profile: Top tips for maximising value.

Simon Tomes
Simon Tomes
Community Lead at Ministry of Testing
he/him
Hello, I'm Simon. Since 2003 I've had various roles in testing, tech leadership and coaching. I believe in the power of collaboration, creativity and community.
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