Welcome to another episode of the Testing Peers podcast. In this episode, Simon, David, Chris and returning host, Dan Ashby explore what makes a high-performing team and how leaders can intentionally create the right environment for teams to thrive. The conversation builds on both shared experience and real-world examples of navigating complex team dynamics.

Topics Discussed

• Psychological safety
How teams understand it, how fragile it can be and the different forms it takes, including inclusion, learning, contributor and challenger safety.

• Purpose and direction
Why clarity of mission anchors decision making and helps individuals see their contribution to collective outcomes.

• Skills, proficiency and growth
Understanding a team’s starting point, enabling learning opportunities and how building capability strengthens trust and accountability. Dan also introduces his High-Performing Teams Framework, which provides a structured model for these elements:
https://evolvingleadership.uk/the-hpt-framework/

• Trust and ownership
The importance of follow-through, transparency and what Chris refers to as decisive humility when leading in uncertain or inherited contexts.

• Joy and community
How internal communities, shared testing sessions, social connection and small rituals can support morale and cohesion, especially in remote environments.

• Real-world leadership experiences
Chris shares an example of challenging expectations from leadership by gathering context, sense-checking with peers and approaching difficult conversations with evidence and respect.

Also in this episode

Burnout, remote working dynamics, and the role of workplace friendships in supporting sustainable performance.

#PeersCon26 Tickets for the event are now live too, starting at £15 until December 2025, when they increase to £30.
And as always, we are looking for sponsors to make this event the success it has been for the last 2 years, get in touch if interested

Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
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We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores

If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers

Thanks to our sponsors – NFocus Testing.

nFocus are a UK based software testing company. They’ve been supporting businesses for 24 years by providing services that include burst resource, accelerated test automation, performance testing and fully managed testing services. In 2021, they launched a Test Automation Academy to create amazing testers and they’ve now created jobs for 48 people in our industry in just under three years!

nFocus were a big part of PeersCon in 2024 and 2025, really grateful for all they do to support the Testing Peers.

www.nfocus.co.uk and info@nfocus.co.uk for anyone wanting to get in touch.

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Welcome to episode 139 of the Testing Peers podcast. This time, the Peers dive into the sequel to episode 39, for Testing Rants part 2. Hosting this episode is Callum Akehurst-Ryan, Tara Walton, Chris Armstrong and David Maynard.

After a brief ranter moment (terrible rant banter portmanteau, sorry), the team move onto the main topic.

Topics covered in this episode:
Documentation Issues

• Single Points of Failure: Documentation saved locally or only in one place.
• Poor Comments: Insufficient or missing code/system comments.
• Clarity over Volume: The need for context and value to avoid "death by documentation."

The Problem with Assumptions

• "Termites of Relationships": Assumptions damage team relationships and project outcomes (citing Henry Winkler).
• Contextual Blind Spots: Discussing unchecked assumptions in daily work.

Value and Motivation

• Missing the WHY: Lack of communication around the ultimate VALUE of the work.
• Purpose Drives Motivation: Knowing why tasks matter increases engagement.

Cognitive Load and Flow

• Spoon Theory: Managing limited mental energy and cognitive load.
• Flow Disruptors: Identifying Slack/notifications as excessive noise that breaks focus.

Time Off and Workplace Safety

• Managing Return: Setting healthy expectations for those returning after time off.
• Psychological Safety: The foundational requirement for taking necessary breaks.
• "Always On" Pressure: Ranting against the pressure for a digital detox and constant online presence.

Community and Celebration

Lisa Crispin Shoutout: Acknowledging her commitment to championing the community.

Shining a Light: The importance of celebrating and elevating others.

#PeersCon26 Tickets for the event are now live too, starting at £15 until December 2025, when they increase to £30.
And as always, we are looking for sponsors to make this event the success it has been for the last 2 years, get in touch if interested

Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)

We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores

If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers

Thanks to our sponsors – NFocus Testing.

nFocus are a UK based software testing company. They’ve been supporting businesses for 24 years by providing services that include burst resource, accelerated test automation, performance testing and fully managed testing services. In 2021, they launched a Test Automation Academy to create amazing testers and they’ve now created jobs for 48 people in our industry in just under three years!

nFocus were a big part of PeersCon in 2024 and 2025, really grateful for all they do to support the Testing Peers.

www.nfocus.co.uk and info@nfocus.co.uk for anyone wanting to get in touch.

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Welcome to episode 138 of the Testing Peers Podcast

In this episode, Chris, Rachel, David and Russell discuss how people begin their careers in testing and software quality today.

After a light-hearted round of “Two Truths and a Lie (But All Lies)”, the conversation turns to the different ways people enter the field, and how those paths have changed over time. The Peers share their own experiences and reflect on what helps new testers succeed.

Topics include:

• Apprenticeships, graduate schemes and internal career changes
• The importance of curiosity, communication and collaboration
• Balancing technical skills with people skills
• The impact of AI and automation on entry routes
• Building inclusive teams and supporting diverse backgrounds
• The difference between culture add and culture fit

The group explore what organisations can do to create better entry points into quality roles, and how experienced professionals can help the next generation of testers grow with confidence.

#PeersCon26 Tickets for the event are now live too, starting at £15 until December 2025, when they increase to £30.
And as always, we are looking for sponsors to make this event the success it has been for the last 2 years, get in touch if interested

Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)

We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores

If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers

Thanks to our sponsors – NFocus Testing.

nFocus are a UK based software testing company. They’ve been supporting businesses for 24 years by providing services that include burst resource, accelerated test automation, performance testing and fully managed testing services. In 2021, they launched a Test Automation Academy to create amazing testers and they’ve now created jobs for 48 people in our industry in just under three years!

nFocus were a big part of PeersCon in 2024 and 2025, really grateful for all they do to support the Testing Peers.

www.nfocus.co.uk and info@nfocus.co.uk for anyone wanting to get in touch.

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Welcome to episode 137 of the Testing Peers podcast!

This time, join Callum Akehurst-Ryan, Russell Craxford, Chris Armstrong and David Maynard as we discuss Personal Branding and Social Media.

In this episode, the Peers discuss the importance of personal branding and the role social media plays in shaping professional identity within the testing community.

The conversation explores how each of the hosts approaches their own personal brand, the motivations behind building one, and the ways in which visibility and authenticity can influence employability, reputation and connection. The group also considers the evolution of social media platforms, how algorithms influence engagement, and how to use these platforms effectively while staying true to personal values.

Key discussion points include:

• The link between personal branding and professional opportunities
• Developing an identifiable and consistent online presence
• Balancing authenticity, tone of voice and self-promotion
• The impact of algorithms and how to navigate them
• Choosing the right platforms for your goals, from LinkedIn and YouTube to community spaces such as the Ministry of Testing Club [https://club.ministryoftesting.com/]
• The idea of defining your brand through a single theme or “word” [https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/whats-your-word-finding-perfectly-describes-you-career-dan-ashby-1sv2e/?trackingId=xoBbDkUiRfmqX6GsXR2U7g%3D%3D]

The hosts share their experiences of what has worked for them, the challenges of maintaining consistency, and the benefits of intentionality in developing a recognisable and trustworthy online identity.

#PeersCon26 Tickets for the event are now live too, starting at £15 until December 2025, when they increase to £30.
And as always, we are looking for sponsors to make this event the success it has been for the last 2 years, get in touch if interested

Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)

We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores

If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers

Thanks to our sponsors – NFocus Testing.

nFocus are a UK based software testing company. They’ve been supporting businesses for 24 years by providing services that include burst resource, accelerated test automation, performance testing and fully managed testing services. In 2021, they launched a Test Automation Academy to create amazing testers and they’ve now created jobs for 48 people in our industry in just under three years!

nFocus were a big part of PeersCon in 2024 and 2025, really grateful for all they do to support the Testing Peers.

www.nfocus.co.uk and info@nfocus.co.uk for anyone wanting to get in touch.

Support the show

Welcome to episode 136 of the Testing Peers podcast.

In this episode, David, Chris, Russell and Tara dig into a question from #PeersCon25 speaker, Stuart Pates: what’s the difference between a test strategy and a quality engineering strategy?

The peers explore:

• Whether strategies are rigid documents, living guides, or something in between
• How context drives whether you need a test strategy, a quality strategy, or both
• Why language and labels (“test” vs “quality”) can help or hinder collaboration
• The role of purpose and value in defining strategies that actually work
• Strategies as empowerment tools versus “one-way to do things” policies
• How to avoid strategies becoming shelfware and instead keep them living and relevant

As always, there’s plenty of banter (including revelations about everyone’s oldest open browser tab!) before diving into the topic.

We’d love to hear your thoughts, what does strategy mean in your organisation, and how do you approach the balance between quality and testing?

#PeersCon26 Tickets for the event are now live too, starting at £15 until December 2025, when they increase to £30.
And as always, we are looking for sponsors to make this event the success it has been for the last 2 years, get in touch if interested

Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)

We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores

If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers

Thanks to our sponsors – NFocus Testing.

nFocus are a UK based software testing company. They’ve been supporting businesses for 24 years by providing services that include burst resource, accelerated test automation, performance testing and fully managed testing services. In 2021, they launched a Test Automation Academy to create amazing testers and they’ve now created jobs for 48 people in our industry in just under three years!

nFocus were a big part of PeersCon in 2024 and 2025, really grateful for all they do to support the Testing Peers.

www.nfocus.co.uk and info@nfocus.co.uk for anyone wanting to get in touch.

Support the show

Welcome to episode 135 of the Testing Peers Podcast. This time join Chris, Russell, David and the returning Jon Robinson as we talk all things AI in testing.

Artificial intelligence is already reshaping how we approach testing, QA and quality. But what happens when the pace of change accelerates? In this episode, the Peers explore what AI might mean for our profession, our skills and the value we bring.

We discuss:

• The future of QA roles in the next 3–5 years and which functions may fade or evolve.
• Why exploratory testing could become more important as AI takes on repetitive checking.
• The risk of over-reliance on AI tools, from hallucinations to “blind hope” in outputs.
• New skills testers may need: data literacy, training and validating models, and critical thinking about outputs.
• Shifts in business mindsets: AI as a cost-cutting tool vs AI as an enabler.
• The challenges of scalability, maintainability and sustainability when using AI.
• Ethical and legal concerns around data sharing, intellectual property and training models.
• How diverse skills and perspectives remain crucial for testing in an AI-driven future.

Along the way, we touch on topics from token debt and environmental impact, to healthcare examples, to why trust and human experience still matter.

#PeersCon26 Call for Collaborations for written and video submissions until September 30th 2025, and also for VolunPeers. More on all this can be found here

Tickets for the event are now live too, starting at £15 until December, when they go up to £30.
And as always, we are looking for sponsors to make this event the success it has been for the last 2 years, get in touch if interested

Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)

We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores

If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers

Thanks to our sponsors – NFocus Testing.

nFocus are a UK based software testing company. They’ve been supporting businesses for 24 years by providing services that include burst resource, accelerated test automation, performance testing and fully managed testing services. In 2021, they launched a Test Automation Academy to create amazing testers and they’ve now created jobs for 48 people in our industry in just under three years!

nFocus were a big part of PeersCon in 2024 and 2025, really grateful for all they do to support the Testing Peers.

www.nfocus.co.uk and info@nfocus.co.uk for anyone wanting to get in touch.

Support the show

Welcome to Episode 134 of the Testing Peers podcast. This week, join Simon, David, Tara and Chris.

How do we explain testing and quality to people who are not testers, in a way that actually lands? In this episode, we talk about meeting stakeholders where they are, translating quality into the language of risk, cost and outcomes, and building trust through visible work and data. We also share practical ways to bring non-testers into the quality journey, from testathons to storytelling.

What we cover

• Getting out of the testing echo chamber and speaking in terms others value, for example, risk, time, cost and customer impact.
• Why “finish testing by Friday” and pass or fail dashboards miss the point, and how to reframe around confidence and acceptable quality.
• Trusted advisor status is earned, not assumed, through consistent visibility and data that supports decisions.
• Using risk as a shared language, tying quality work to concrete mitigations that matter to stakeholders.
• The tension between flexibility and standards, and why some consistency helps credibility.
• Startups versus enterprises, common perceptions of testing, and how to counter “devs can do it all” or “cheap offshore scripts are enough”.
• Making the work visible: show outcomes, not just activities, and celebrate wins to build momentum.
• AI in quality, cautious optimism, and the importance of getting involved early so we help shape how it is used and tested.

Practical ideas discussed

• Run regular testathons and paired exploratory sessions that include developers, product, customer support and leaders. Let people experience the work and discover real issues together.
• Tell relevant, audience-shaped stories. CFO cares about the cost of quality, product cares about customer outcomes, engineers care about feasibility and flow.
• Start small, show value, then scale. Use data from pilots to make a compelling case.
• Document enough to show standards and accountability, without losing agility.
• Use tools like RiskStorming to surface risks early and align on mitigations.
• Own the narrative. Be assertive, positive and specific about the value testing brings, not just the problems it finds.

Shout-outs and references

• Callum Akehurst-Ryan on becoming trusted advisors.
• Sophie Küster, The Impostor’s Guide to Tooting Your Own Horn.
• RiskStorming and other collaborative risk techniques.
• Exploratory testing and team testathons as ongoing practice, not a one-off event.

#PeersCon26 Call for Collaborations for written and video submissions until September 30th 2025, and also for VolunPeers. More on all this can be found here

Tickets for the event are now live too, starting at £15 until December, when they go up to £30.
And as always, we are looking for sponsors to make this event the success it has been for the last 2 years, get in touch if interested

Thanks to our sponsors – NFocus Testing.

nFocus are a UK based software testing company. They’ve been supporting businesses for 24 years by providing services that include burst resource, accelerated test automation, performance testing and fully managed testing services. In 2021, they launched a Test Automation Academy to create amazing testers and they’ve now created jobs for 48 people in our industry in just under three years!

www.nfocus.co.uk and info@nfocus.co.uk for anyone wanting to get in touch.

Support the show

Welcome to episode 133 of the Testing Peers podcast.

In this episode, the Peers (Chris, Callum, David and Russell) explore the complex and often subtle art of influencing quality within teams, organisations and wider cultures.

The team share stories from early careers to more recent consulting and coaching experiences. The conversation examines how influence operates in practice and what it truly means to be a voice for quality. This is a discussion about mindset shifts, not mandates. About patience, not prescriptions.

Topics covered include:

• What influence looks like in quality-focused roles
• The difference between being responsible for quality and being a voice of quality
• Building credibility and rapport in complex environments
• How time, language and context influence
• Coaching versus prescribing solutions
• Making invisible work visible to gain traction
• Overcoming cynicism and staying curious
• How influence can ripple beyond the testing team

Whether you are coaching, testing or leading, this episode is packed with practical insights and thoughtful discussion on how to support quality in meaningful, lasting ways.

#PeersCon26 Call for Collaborations for written and video submissions until September 30th 2025, and also for VolunPeers. More on all this can be found here

Tickets for the event are now live too, starting at £15 until December, when they go up to £30.
And as always, we are looking for sponsors to make this event the success it has been for the last 2 years, get in touch if interested

Twitter (https://twitter.com/testingpeers)
LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/testing-peers)
Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/testingpeers/)
Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/TestingPeers)

We’re also now on GoodPods, check it out via the mobile app stores

If you like what we do and are able to, please visit our Patreon to explore how you could support us going forwards: https://www.patreon.com/testingpeers

Thanks to our sponsors – NFocus Testing.

nFocus are a UK based software testing company. They’ve been supporting businesses for 24 years by providing services that include burst resource, accelerated test automation, performance testing and fully managed testing services. In 2021, they launched a Test Automation Academy to create amazing testers and they’ve now created jobs for 48 people in our industry in just under three years!

nFocus were a big part of PeersCon in 2024 and 2025, really grateful for all they do supporting the Testing Peers.

www.nfocus.co.uk and info@nfocus.co.uk for anyone wanting to get in touch.

Support the show