teams

Man in a business meeting persuading a client What to Keep in Mind If You Want to Be Persuasive

To successfully persuade someone of something, it’s important to keep in mind how you come across to others—when you’re trying to persuade and when you’re not. It's a good idea to build up trust and credibility before you need something, listen to others when they're in need, and think about tailoring your message.

Naomi Karten's picture
Naomi Karten
Hand drawing connections between multiple site locations on a map Creating a Cohesive Culture in a Distributed Organization

When organizations are distributed across multiple locations, it brings questions about how much each location should have a unique identity relative to the larger company. While a theme of “we are one” is common, it’s better to embrace the differences and work toward being a cohesive group that celebrates diversity.

Steve Berczuk's picture
Steve Berczuk
Microphone on stage at a software conference 4 Takeaways from Agile + DevOps East 2018

With a week full of sessions, tutorials, training classes, and events, the Agile + DevOps East software conference had plenty of takeaways. Here are four highlights, including discussions about agile estimation, finding your ideal job, some challenges to advancing test automation, and leading self-organizing teams.

Owen Gotimer's picture
Owen Gotimer
Hand holding a camera lens focusing on faraway mountains Agile and DevOps Bring the Focus Back on Quality

As companies move to agile and DevOps, silos are coming down and there is more interaction and collaboration among teams. Quality is also becoming everyone's responsibility for the entire software development lifecycle. Quality is more than just testing: Consider a quality value stream along the overall value chain.

Michael Sowers's picture
Michael Sowers
Person planning a project using an agile framework Frameworks Are an Agile Leader's Best Friend

With a framework in place, engineers can stop worrying about everything that framework does for them. Your team can focus on solving your business problems instead of building yet another solution to an old problem that's been solved before. Look around and identify the mistakes your team is making over and over.

Josh Anderson's picture
Josh Anderson
Microphone on a stage at a conference Lessons Learned (and Unlearned) at STARCANADA 2018

With a week full of sessions, tutorials, training classes, and events, the STARCANADA software testing conference had plenty of takeaways. Some highlights: what jobs will look like in the future with AI, why testers should lead efforts to make quality everyone's responsibility, and the importance of unlearning.

Owen Gotimer's picture
Owen Gotimer
Chalkboard showing half analytical and half colorful doodles Helping Introverts and Extroverts Work Together

The personality tendencies of extroversion and introversion concern where people get their energy, and this is key to understanding how coworkers can perceive—and sometimes misinterpret—each other’s behavior. If the introvert-extrovert dynamic poses challenges, consider discussing these differences as a team.

Naomi Karten's picture
Naomi Karten
Two people practicing pair programming Solo Programming, Pairing, and Mobbing: Which Is Right for You?

Programming often is considered an individual pursuit, but there are other options gaining popularity: pairing, where you work with another developer or tester, and mobbing, where the entire team works on one thing at a time. Each is effective for certain kinds of challenges. How much collaboration is right for you?

Jeff Langr's picture
Jeff Langr