Matthew Heusser

The Managing Consultant at Excelon Development, Matt Heusser is probably best known for his writing. Matt is the former technical editor of Stickyminds.com and he was the lead editor for "How To Reduce The Cost Of Software Testing" (Taylor and Francis, 2011). Matt has served both as a board member for the Association for Software Testing and as a part-time instructor in Information Systems for Calvin College.

Connect with Me

All Stories by Matthew Heusser

Staying Competitive in Software Testing

In today’s global economy, staying competitive may be more important than ever. Three ways to contend are by focusing on price, niche (addressing a particular group’s needs), or differentiation (doing things better in some way). Which tactic you choose could make all the difference for your software team.

The Tester as Product Owner

A lot of the bugs we find were never thought through in the first place. Many of these situations are preventable, yet instead of prevention, we get the tester playing the role of the product owner—and playing it late. Why is it that we never have time to do it right, but we always have time to do it over?

Google’s Magic Metric

Google has a "magic metric" that determines where effort should be spent, based on the fact that the number of hits on every site with one of its ads is directly correlated to revenue. Most companies do not have a magic metric, so they search for a way to measure process. How can you change the conversation?

Providing Visibility into Testing Processes That Matter

If the goal of a tester's customer report is to figure out what needs fixing, how close you are to shipping, or how much time you need to do additional testing, the metrics provided often don't give any of those answers. Matt Heusser tells you how and why you need to focus your information.

What's Your Story? How Testers Add Value

Testers have a story. It involves the kind of information we gather, the way we gather it, whom we tell, and what decisions are impacted by it. Management has their own story, but sometimes the goals are different. Find out the story your executives have for testing, and see what value it brings.

Software Tester: A Role in Transition

In an attempt at streamlining, over the years the role of tester has changed. In some cases it's been downright eliminated, replaced by automated acceptance checks and unit tests that run constantly. The state of the traditional tester role is in flux, so it’s time to take a fresh look at testing.

Cultivating the Growth Mindset

To the fixed mindset, new ideas are either not important and easily rejected, or scary and different. It forces us to focus on our roles and learn in places that are already our strengths. Strive to cultivate a growth mindset, where what you don’t know is an opportunity to learn more and get better.

TechWell Insights To Go

(* Required fields)

Get the latest stories delivered to your inbox every month.

Email *

Country *

Leave this field blank