This Week in Quality

In episode 121 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Simon Holmes and Judy Mosley settle in (coffee vs. missing tea!) and zoom in on how the community is shaping the year ahead through goals, risk thinking, and career growth moments worth celebrating. They highlight the #MyGoals memory-post challenge on ministryoftesting.com (and the Goal Setter badge), reflecting on how different people approach goal-setting and why “showing up” each day can matter more than the end result.Simon shares updates from the MoTaverse, including the latest releases in the Software Quality Engineering Certificate (SQUEC), especially a set of short, practical audio perspectives on quality culture. A standout theme is framing quality in terms of risks people actually care about, and making consequences visible beyond test cases and requirements. Judy connects this to a real-world “bug surfaced at the worst possible moment” story, fuel for MoT’s Bugs in the Wild learning collection, and the group explores Cassandra Lung’s powerful idea of mapping “circles of consequences” to help teams (and leaders) feel the real impact of “low priority” issues.The conversation then opens up to the community on stage. Helene shares the pain of repeatedly flagging an issue that only becomes urgent when a deadline hits, and the challenge of being trusted while also being overloaded. Cassandra expands on building buy-in through human impact, “nightmare scenarios,” and deliberate risk decisions, plus a very relatable dose of consumer-side quality frustration while moving apartments. Daria Zion celebrates her first MoT article going live, Five practical ways to use AI as a partner in quality engineering, and shares how she’s improving interview feedback and hiring workflows. Ujjwal Kumar Singh talks performance reviews, experimenting with Playwright tooling, and proposing a move from test reports to a quality narrative, while Simon flags new My Reports features in MyMoT for tracking course progress and community activity. Finally, Demi Van Malcott closes the episode with a brilliant win: an official promotion to Quality Manager, and a reminder that growth often starts by taking on the work before you feel ready.#ThisWeekInQuality#MyGoals#QualityCulture#Risk#QualityNarrative#CareerGrowth#MoTaverse

In episode 120 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Eamon Droko and Simon Tomes focus on the power of sharing as a learning strategy, in Eamon’s first time co-hosting the show. They kick off with a look at Eamon’s new Into the MoTaverse episode, touching on themes of showing up, bias and inclusivity in hiring, and the value of talking openly about your day-to-day work. Simon reflects on how speaking and writing in public helps you notice your own progress, and they both champion memory posts on ministryoftesting.com as small, frequent reflections that build a visible learning journey and strengthen your profile.The conversation then turns to what’s new inside the MoTaverse, especially the launch of chapters as the next evolution of local meetups. Eamon shares his new role as a co-organiser of MoT London, while Simon explains how chapters connect to the MoT star system, making activity a proxy for learning and career growth. Community member Neil Taylor joins the stage to compare old-school one-and-done training courses with MoT’s ongoing community-supported learning, and to explore how long-term testers can move towards quality engineering by identifying and closing gaps over time.Later, Ayesha Saeed shares her excitement about becoming Accessibility Guild lead at her consultancy, where an accessibility lab and an expanding team are raising awareness across roles, experimenting with AI tools to support audit work, and helping people experience assistive technologies first-hand. Gary Hawkes celebrates completing the A tester’s role in continuous quality course and talks about using memory posts as micro-blogs, pushing for a legacy automation refactor, and the frustrations of accessibility losing priority once contracts change. Throughout, the group returns to a simple idea: start small, find one ally, share one thing you’ve learned, and let the community carry that learning further than you could alone.#ThisWeekInQuality#Sharing#Accessibility#QualityCommunity#MoTaverse

In episode 119 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Demi Van Malcot and Simon Tomes explore the theme of goals and how sharing them in public can spark motivation, support and community. The episode begins with a busy week in quality updates and a look at the Ministry of Testing goals challenge, where people post goals on ministryoftesting.com, tag them with my-goals and earn badges for goal setter, goal netter and goal getter. The chat joins in as Demi and Simon introduce the idea of goal thievery, encouraging listeners to steal useful goals from others and make them their own.A highlight of the session is a game of Whose goal is that, where real goals from the collection are read aloud and the live audience guesses the author. This brings up goals about getting back on conference stages, contributing more to This Week in Quality and Lean Coffee, writing for MoT and making better use of profiles and memberships. The group also normalise small goals, weekly goals and what Simon calls goal riffing, removing the pressure to set a perfect year-long plan.Later, community member Ady Stokes joins to share his ambition to make thinking in testing more visible, intentional and teachable, a long-term effort that may grow into a book supported by articles and workshops. Rosie Sherry, CEO of Ministry of Testing, talks about establishing the MoTaverse as a member driven organisation and offering community as a service, including a new Into the MoTaverse podcast. Demi reflects on her own journey from joining a session to co-hosting and speaking at MoT events, reinforcing the message that you do not need to do goals alone. Sharing helps others support you and lets the community lift you up.#ThisWeekInQuality#Goals#GoalThief#QualityCommunity#MoTaverse

In episode 118 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Ben Dowen and Simon Tomes are joined by community members Gary Hawkes, Maithilee Chunduri and Richard Adams for the first live session of 2026. Recorded on Friday 9 January, the episode opens with New Year energy, MoT goals, badges and “fill up your MoT profile” prompts, plus a reminder about the MoT Ambassadors programme and all the ways people can get involved in events this year.From there, the conversation quickly anchors on a powerful article about AI, testing and getting “back to basics.” The group explore over reliance on AI, shallow understanding and blind spots when tools drive the work instead of human analysis, collaboration and shared understanding. Simon and Ben keep returning to essentials like critical thinking, systems thinking, communication and risk focus, picking up key lines from the article such as “AI is most valuable once humans have already done the thinking” and “AI helps us move faster, but humans still decide where to run and why.”Across the episode, the panel share real examples of using AI in practice. Ben talks through his Playwright work, using AI powered tooling to add data-test-ids, only to catch a subtle but important mistake later during testing. Richard describes using AI agents with Jira, root cause analysis and Confluence to surface risky areas and guide exploratory testing, highlighting how useful context makes AI genuinely helpful. Gary walks through how his team tried AI coding tools, what happened when the initial push was “faster and cheaper,” and how developers themselves became more cautious and selective over time. Maithilee shares how AI is now a core part of how she learns, stressing the need for clear goals, good prompts and not taking outputs at face value.Threaded through it all are themes of accountability, risk appetite and the AI quality human loop. The group discuss exploratory testing supported by AI, where tools help with ideas, heuristics and note taking, but humans still own the charters, decisions and debriefs. They return several times to the idea that AI is a tool, not a solution for quality work, and that testers add value when they question, validate and refuse to outsource judgement. By the end of the hour, one message is clear. AI might run fast, but meaningful quality still depends on people who ask good questions, understand context and are willing to stay accountable for the outcomes.#ThisWeekInQuality#AIandTesting#ExploratoryTesting#HumanInTheLoop#QualityEngineering

In this special end-of-year recording, This Year in Quality, co-hosts Rosie Sherry and Simon Tomes do something a bit different.This end-of-year special is live. It’s community-powered. It’s a quiz. The rules are simple. Wrong answers only.Instead of a polished wrap-up or a neat reflection on the year, Rosie and Simon invite the community to join in and have a bit of fun. Together, they look back on the year through questions, numbers, stats, mascots, stars, badges, meetups, glossary terms, rebrands, and all the small moments that made 2025 what it was.There are name changes, silly answers, serious pride in what the community has built, and the occasional bug with the platform along the way. Because of course there is.The episode celebrates what This Year in Quality has become. A space for shared learning, curiosity, experimentation, and showing up as a community. It’s light-hearted, messy, and very on-brand. A reminder that quality is not just about certainty and correctness, but about people thinking together.A fitting way to wrap up the year and look ahead to what comes next.#ThisYearInQuality#SoftwareTesting#QualityEngineering#TestingCommunity#MinistryOfTesting#TestingPodcast#QualityCulture

In episode 116 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Ben Dowen and Demi Van Malcot are joined by Ady Stokes and Judy Mosley for a story-driven conversation about trust, systems, and what happens when reality and “what the computer says” don’t line up. Billed as the penultimate episode of the year, the discussion opens with end-of-year reflections before quickly diving into everyday quality problems.The episode centres on real-world examples where systems get it wrong. Parcels delivered to the wrong house because the scanner says so, cars confidently reporting incorrect speed limits, and checklists that are followed perfectly while the actual problem sits right in front of you. Ady shares a classic server-room story about power cables and blind checklist following, while Demi reflects on teaching computers through explicit instructions and how easily assumptions creep in when context is missing.As the conversation develops, the group explore trust in data, AI, and automation. Judy raises questions about people relying on confident but incorrect answers, relationships with chatbots, and how easily we accept what tools tell us without validation. Ben repeatedly brings the discussion back to first principles, sense-making, and the risks of outsourcing thinking to systems that cannot see the wider situation.Across the episode, the theme is clear. Quality breaks down when we stop questioning, stop validating, and defer to tools simply because they sound certain. Quality shows up when people notice mismatches, challenge assumptions, and ask, “does this actually make sense?” even when the system insists it does.#ThisWeekInQuality#TrustAndQuality#DataQuality#FirstPrinciples#QualityThinking

In episode 115 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Nataliia Burmei and Simon Tomes are joined by Clare Norman and Gary Hawkes for a conversation full of “fizzy minds” and quality problems. The group start by reflecting on end-of-year pressures, learning goals for 2026 and the launch of the new Thanks button in the MoTverse before turning toward the main topic: quality coaching and how people understand it in their day-to-day work.The discussion centres on situational quality coaching and the idea that there is no cookie-cutter coaching template. Clare talks about working with teams based on their ability and motivation, and how bridge building across roles helps people care about quality when competing priorities make it hard. Gary shares stories from his organisation, where shrinking teams have made shared ownership essential. He describes whole-team exploratory sessions, giving product managers prompts to think about quality and helping developers “zoom out” instead of getting stuck in the weeds of Jira tickets.Across the episode, the group return to a simple message: you don’t need “quality coach” in your job title to coach. As soon as you step out of your bubble, ask better questions, help teams see the bigger picture or create space for quality conversations, you are already doing the work. It’s about encouraging learning, care and collaboration so teams can tackle their quality problems together.#QualityCoaching#QualityEngineering#TeamCollaboration#ContinuousImprovement#QualityAsCare

In episode 114 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Ben Dowen and Simon Tomes are joined by Dan Caseley and Maithilee Chunduri for a focused and practical conversation about the realities of mobile testing. The group begin by reflecting on recent discussions in the community before shifting into the core theme of the episode: how mobile testing has become both simpler and more complex at the same time.Dan brings experience from years of mobile work and talks through the shift from physical device cupboards to cloud device farms, the limitations of both, and why testing on “all the things” is neither practical nor necessary. Maithilee adds insight from distributed teams, where reproducing issues across locations, devices and settings becomes a real challenge. Their stories highlight how mobile testing often stretches further than teams expect.The conversation explores why teams increasingly build and run apps locally, how analytics guide device choices, and why API-level checks remain essential. The group also dig into the constraints of mobile releases, the difficulty of rollbacks, and the need to balance depth, breadth and pragmatism when planning mobile test coverage.Across the episode, the discussion stays grounded in day-to-day practice. It encourages listeners to rethink their approach to mobile testing, make risk-based decisions, and accept that chasing every device permutation isn’t the path to quality. Instead, thoughtful choices and clear collaboration help teams move faster with confidence.#MobileTesting#QualityEngineering#RiskBasedTesting#ModernTesting#DistributedTeams

In episode 113 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Simon Tomes and Ben Dowen are joined on stage by Callum Akehurst-Ryan for a thoughtful and humorous exploration of what “good enough” really means in software quality. The trio begin with a story about a restaurant refusing to serve a dish that didn’t meet its own standards, which sparks a wider discussion about transparency, honesty, and the courage to say no.That story leads into a deeper look at quality thinking traps. Simon, Ben, and Callum unpack why teams often chase perfection when bronze-level quality is all that’s needed, how ego can get in the way of good decisions, and why pragmatism is an essential quality enabler. They reflect on Cloudflare’s recent outage report as an example of human-centred communication done well, and connect it to the importance of clarity, ownership and care in engineering teams.Callum brings insight into the broader impact of quality beyond end users, highlighting how marketing, support and engineering teams all experience quality in different ways. The group talk about outcomes over output, how to avoid over-engineering, and why narratives are more powerful than reports when influencing culture. The conversation also touches on the risks of “gold-plated” delivery, the curse of knowledge, and how testers can move from tragedy takers to narrative givers.Throughout the episode, the discussion stays grounded in real situations from day-to-day work. It encourages listeners to reflect on their own expectations, question how they set quality bars, and consider where saying “this is good enough” is the most responsible choice.It’s a warm, honest session that invites the community to rethink what quality looks like in practice and to embrace care, clarity and healthy pragmatism in their work.#QualityCulture#QualityNarrative#GoodEnough#Pragmatism#Transparency#QualityEngineering#HumanFactors#QualityMindset

In episode 112 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Judy Mosley and Ben Dowen welcome Scott Kenyon and Ady Stokes to the stage for an honest and energetic conversation about the meaning of quality engineering in today’s teams. The group explore how the term is used across companies, why definitions vary so widely, and what happens when people bring different expectations to the same role.The discussion begins with a light detour into biscuits and snacks, which quickly becomes a reflection on how familiar words can mean very different things in different contexts. This leads into the main theme of the episode. The panel talk about the blurred vision of quality engineering, the mix of strategy and execution in the work, and the confusion caused when companies use the title to describe very different jobs.Scott shares a moment that sparked his own existential crisis about test leadership and identity. Ady adds perspective on the difference between testing the product and influencing the systems that build it. Judy and Ben help surface the real tension many testers and quality engineers face when role titles shift or expectations grow without support.Throughout the episode the conversation stays grounded in lived experience. The panel explore the rise of tool focused job descriptions, the pressure to fit automation heavy roles, and the growing need for curiosity, resilience, collaboration, and clear communication. They also highlight ongoing work on the new Software Quality Engineering Certificate and invite the community to share audio stories about their day to day work.It is a warm, thoughtful session that encourages listeners to look beyond titles and focus on purpose, clarity, and the real impact of their work.

In episode 111 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Ben Dowen and Simon Tomes welcome Christine Pinto and Jesper Ottosen to the stage for a lively conversation about the role of quality feedback in modern software teams. The group explore how testers and quality advocates can influence product direction early, not just through testing artefacts, but through meaningful conversations, shared understanding, and timely insights.The panel discuss why testing artefacts such as test cases and plans can become outdated, heavy to maintain, and sometimes disconnected from the real value testers bring. Instead of collecting documents for the sake of documentation, they focus on the usefulness of feedback loops, learning through collaboration, and asking the right questions at the right time. Christine and Jesper share stories from their own experience where feedback changed decisions, shaped better outcomes, and reduced waste.Throughout the episode, Ben and Simon spark discussion with a quick quiz on leadership ideas from recent Leading with Quality conversations. The guests reflect on shifting perceptions of testing, influencing teams without authority, and supporting quality as a shared responsibility. It is an energetic, thoughtful session that encourages listeners to prioritise learning, alignment, and improvement over artefacts that no longer serve a purpose.

In episode 110 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Simon Tomes and Demi Van Malcot host a spooky Halloween special filled with ghostly bug stories from across the MoTaverse. The episode opens with a chilling introduction from the “digital graveyard” before diving into community tales of fright and fun. From “Wrong branch deployed to production on a Friday” to “It worked on my machine,” testers share their creepiest and most relatable quality nightmares.On stage, Judy Mosley tells of a haunting MUI upgrade that removed all her test IDs and broke dozens of checks. Gary Hawkes recalls a true testing horror from a police system project gone wrong, filled with catastrophic bugs and painful lessons. Ady Stokes brings comic relief with The Rise of the Zombie Emails, a flood of thousands of messages he could not stop. Heleen Van Grootven reminds everyone why you never test in production, after one mistake triggered 100,000 phone calls at once.Between scares, laughter, and community wisdom, Simon and Demi celebrate how testers turn mistakes into learning moments. Episode 110 shows that even in testing’s darkest corners, curiosity, collaboration, and a sense of humour keep the MoT community alive and well.

In episode 109 of This Week in Quality, co-hosts Simon Tomes and Nataliia Burmei guide another happy Friday gathering packed with stories, ideas, and reflections from across the MoTaverse.The episode opens with Nataliia exploring new mobile testing tools, connecting MCP servers to AI agents, and tackling team conversations about shared ownership of testing. Simon shares updates to Ministry of Testing profiles, including new filtering features, GitHub links, and the growing importance of stars, badges, and community recognition.On stage, Scott Kenyon sparks a debate with his question, “Is AI removing curiosity and creativity from testers?” This leads to a thoughtful conversation about critical thinking, collaboration, and human judgment. Neil Taylor joins to share lessons from moving API work from Postman to Bruno and reflects on communication wins across development and support teams. Nadja Schulz celebrates hosting her first MoT Berlin Meetup and stepping onto the public speaking stage. Christine Pinto talks about using MCP servers, cloud code, and Playwright automation in real projects. Gary Hawkes reflects on sharing his MoTacon insights at work and championing continuous quality. Maithilee Chunduri closes by connecting two decades of learning and reminding us that while technology evolves, curiosity remains the same.From AI debates and first-time talks to stars, profiles, and community spirit, “Curiosity Killed the Chat” shows how the community keeps questioning, learning, and celebrating quality together.

In episode 108 of This Week in Quality, host Simon Tomes flies solo for a lively Friday session full of news, bugs, and community updates. The show opens with a real inbox mystery when some attendees receive four reminder emails for the same event. Simon then shares announcements about Professional Membership now including in-person events, new course completion badges, and highlights from MoTaCon 2025, including Rahul Parwal’s photo collection and new talks going live.On stage, Stan Desyatnikov joins for the first time to reflect on balancing manual and automated testing in a long-term project. Ady Stokes shares a simple badge completion tip and updates on the Software Quality Engineering Certificate, while Eamon Droko talks about learning accessibility testing and becoming a conduit for community knowledge. Ben Dowen introduces Service Level Objectives (SLOs) as a practical way to define and measure quality.To close, Judy Mosley expands on her new article “Quality Insight: How to Ignite Quality Conversations,” exploring how listening and curiosity help teams connect around quality. From bug reports and badges to principles and people, this episode celebrates how the Ministry of Testing community keeps quality at the heart of everything they do.

In episode 107, the very first under the new name This Week in Quality, co-hosts Demi Van Malcot and Simon Tomes “test in production” as the show moves to a brand-new hosting platform for the first time. They celebrate the rebrand from This Week in Testing to This Week in Quality, exploring what the shift means for the community and why it reflects the growing focus on quality as a whole-system mindset.Joining them on stage, Eamon Droko, Heleen Van Grootven, Ben Dowen, Ady Stokes, and Nataliia Burmei share their post-MoTaCon reflections, from crafting tables and karaoke moments to first-time talks, community stars, and the power of connection. Together, they test out the new Wistia platform live, find a few bugs along the way, and prove that quality is as much about learning, experimenting, and laughing together as it is about software.

In episode 106 of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Simon Tomes and Ben Dowen look ahead to TestBash Brighton with slide-writing crunch, laptop tips for workshops, and the new Leading with Quality notebook. They also celebrate the buzz of MoT meetups and remind listeners how stepping on stage, even for a 99-second talk, can grow confidence and connection. Joining them on stage, Maithi Chun shares her motivation and learning journey, Ady Stokes brings stories from Test Up North and the roots of accessibility, and Iziren John Chima sparks a lively discussion on taking lead roles without manager pay. Together, they mix career advice, community laughs, and practical tips that show why quality people gather.

In episode 105 of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Nataliia Burmei and Oleksandr Romanov contrast the reality of quality conversations with the hype of AI.Oleksandr shares upcoming MoT events in Valencia, Leeds, and Brighton, while Natalia reflects on the joy of in-person meetups and community memories. Their weeks in testing highlight the value of visualization: from earning the Software Testing Essentials Certificate to using diagrams and AI tools to clarify complex systems.On stage, Ben Dowen introduces the capture–review–update cycle for building shared understanding. Preeti Gupta brings energy from the London MoT Meetup, while Christine Pinto talks quality coaching, preparing conference talks, and excitement for TestBash Brighton.The conversation loops back to AI: the hype around tools like v0 and the steady reminder that while tools evolve, human collaboration, critical thinking, and communication remain at the heart of testing.Together, they explore how testers balance new tools with timeless skills, proving again that quality conversations are very real, even when the AI buzz feels less so.#AIInTesting#QualityCoaching#Visualization#DiagramsAndModels#CommunityMeetups#TestBashBrighton#MoTEvents#Collaboration#CriticalThinking

In episode 104 of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Demi Van Malcot and Simon Tomes embrace the chaos of testing life with the support of the MoTaverse.Demi shares a week filled with laptop migrations, budget cuts, and the upcoming loss of a quality manager. This sparks up conversations about how testers can step up, share responsibility, and keep quality work from falling through the cracks. Simon highlights fresh community content, from Rahul Parwal’s Advanced Prompting for Testers course to Ady Stokes’ new article on testing mindsets.On stage, Eamon Droko talks about the highs and lows of his first month in a new role, leaning on the community to break through a rut. Ady expands on the 11 mindsets behind “I Think, Therefore I Test” and floats ideas for games, talks, and more ways to explore them. Gary Hawkes shares lessons from influencing product direction and reflects on team resilience when leaders leave.From Worldwide Tester Day celebrations to TestBash prep, this episode shows how community support turns uncertainty into opportunity, and how the MoTaverse has your back when work gets messy.#TestingCommunity#QualityEngineering#TestLeadership#ThisWeekInTesting

In episode 103 of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Ben Dowen and Judy Mosley throw “Everyone’s invited to the QA Party!” Judy shares solo-QA tactics like a fun QA Slack channel and “Today is…” prompts that spark team chatter. Ben talks about getting developers into exploratory testing and his first look at Mac desktop automation.Guests Nataliia Burmei and Yudit Sharabi add real-world lessons. Nataliia contrasts fast delivery feedback with slow-burn strategy work. Yudit explains “testing without testers” at a startup, from process upgrades to whole-company QA parties. The group swaps tips on starting quality conversations and using AI to reduce draining tasks and improve code reviews.#TestingCommunity#QualityEngineering#TestAutomation#ThisWeekInTesting

In episode 102 of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Simon Tomes and Sarah Deery shine the spotlight on the launch of the Software Testing Essentials Certificate (STEC) — lovingly nicknamed STEC by the community.Sarah shares the years-long journey that led to its creation, from identifying gaps in existing training to surveying over 160 juniors and managers, and finally co-creating a curriculum with 59 contributors across the globe. Simon reflects on reviewing the lessons, the power of asking the right questions, and why the “portfolio of work” makes STEC different from traditional certificates.Ady Stokes joins to describe his role in shaping the article content and explains how STEC goes deeper than any other introduction to testing, covering not just techniques but also storytelling, communication, and critical thinking. Maneesh Maddala jumps in with questions about localisation, AI, and the future of certifications. The live chat adds humour and energy — from Rosie Sherry’s breaking news that she passed the exam, to debates about whether Ady should sit the test he helped write, to ideas about bug-hunting Easter eggs hidden in certificates.Whether you’re tired of the old ISTQB path, curious about how STEC was built, or just want to hear community voices reflect on shaping the future of testing, this episode is packed with insights, stories, and plenty of laughs.#STEC#TestingCommunity#CareersInTesting#LearningAndDevelopment#ThisWeekInTesting