Traditionally, QA is involved late in the development process, working independent from the development team. However, in agile teams, QA works more closely with the whole team on an ongoing and basis. QA in agile groups are more proactive, working to ensure quality in all facets of the development process. Because of this, Agile QA needs to know how to understand both requirements and the code, know how to write their own automated suite cases, and be involved in all aspects of the agile process. This tutorial will examine how the roles of QA shift as organizations become more agile.

Joseph is an agilist, computer scientist, object oriented technologist, international speaker, and pattern author. Joe serves as the President of the board of The Hillside Group, a group dedicated to improving the quality of software development. He is co-author of the Big Ball of Mud pattern, which illuminates many fallacies in software architecture. Joe teaches and mentors developers on Agile Methods, Design, Patterns, Refactoring, and Testing. Joe believes that using good patterns and putting the ability to change software into the hands of the people with the knowledge to change it seems to be one promising avenue toward better software.