This Week in Quality

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 bac...

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. T...

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 underst...

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 tim...

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 courag...

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 discuss...

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 understand...

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...

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 Tes...

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...

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 mi...

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...

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 E...

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...

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. Natal...

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...

In this 101st episode of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Mariem Safi and Demi Van Malcot discuss their excitement and preparation for the upcoming TestBash conference in Brighton. The conversation also explores the current state of the testing industry, including the growing prominence of AI and the importance of professional development. Demi kicks off the discussion by sharing her experience bala...

In this 100th episode of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Mariem Safi and Simon Tomes celebrate the milestone with a lively, wide-ranging conversation, from MCP server hype to the surprise reality of companies making AI usage mandatory, and even tracking it. Christine Pinto kicks things off with her experiences improving performance at Epic Test Quest and ponders how MCP servers could change testing...

In this milestone 99th episode of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Simon Tomes, Ben Dowen, Demi Van Malcot, Oleksandr Romanov, Mariem Safi, Judy Mosley, and Rosie Sherry gather to celebrate the journey so far. They reflect on how the podcast started as a simple experiment and grew into a weekly space for connection, learning, and community support. Each co-host shares what it’s meant to be part of t...

In this episode of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Nataliia Burmei and Simon Tomes gather the community for Episode 98 and steer the conversation toward the spicy topic of performance reviews. Joined on stage by Eamon Droko, Olly Fairhall, and Milan Kumar, they explore how testers experience reviews, why they can feel so Marmite, and whether they can be made more useful, fair, or even enjoyable. Fr...

In this episode of This Week in Testing, co-hosts Nataliia Burmei and Simon Tomes gather the community for Episode 97 and steer the conversation toward all things TestBash Brighton 2025. Joined on stage by Eamon Droko, Preeti Gupta, and Lynda Hughes, they swap meetup stories, celebrate the latest flurry of Community Stars and certificates, and plot a chaotic—but exciting—Episode 99 reunion of ever...

In this episode of This Week in Testing, Demi van Malcot and Oleksandr Romanov uncover community stories, feature launches, and personal milestones that defined another busy week in the world of testing. Joined by Rosie Sherry, Emily O’Connor, Jesse Berkeley, and Sarah Byng, they explore how testers are making connections, shaping their careers, and finding new ways to contribute. From discovering...

In this episode of This Week in Testing, Nataliia Burmei and Ben Dowen open the floor to a community conversation on how testers influence quality through everyday actions. Joined by Christine Pinto, Gary Hawkes, Preeti Gupta, Eamon Droko, and Demi Van Malcot, they share practical stories of leading without needing a leadership title. From supporting remote teams and coaching others to introducing...

In this episode of This Week in Testing, Simon Tomes and Judy Mosley explore how everyday experiences shape the way we test, from catching bugs with imperfect tests to drawing on real-life situations to improve quality. They’re joined by Mariem Safi, Preeti Gupta, and Emily O'Connor, who share honest stories about starting out, finding unexpected bugs, and preparing to speak in front of others wit...

In Episode 93 of This Week in Testing, hosts Simon Tomes and Demi Van Malcot are joined by contributors Preeti Gupta, Maneesh Maddala, Oleksandr Romanov, Gary Hawkes, and Daniel Billing to explore what’s buzzing in the world of software testing. From the surge in global testing meetups to the power of community photo memories, this episode dives deep into how testers connect, reflect, and grow tog...