9.15 Keynote, Auditorium The end of testing as we know it! Rik Marselis, Sogeti Rik Marselis is principal quality consultant at Sogeti in the Netherlands. He is a highly regarded presenter, trainer, author, consultant and coach who supported many organizations and people in improving their quality engineering & testing practice by providing useful tools & checklists, practical support and having in-depth discussions. His presentations are always appreciated for their liveliness, his ability to keep the talks serious but light, and his use of practical examples with humorous comparisons. Rik is an accredited trainer for TMAP, ISTQB and TPI certification training courses, and a fellow of Sogeti’s R&D network SogetiLabs. Rik is a co-author of the TMAP book “Quality for DevOps teams” and contributor to the www.TMAP.net body of knowledge for quality engineering & testing. Also he is co-author of the book “Testing in the digital age – AI makes the difference”. In 2022 Rik received the ISTQB Software Testing Excellence Award. A year later he received the EuroSTAR 2023 Testing Excellence Award. |  |
| 10.40 Auditorium The 3-pillar, balanced quality model of Proactive QA, Detective QA and Reactive QA Szilard Szell, Eficode Szilard is a DevOps Transformation Lead, Test Coach and SAFe 6.0 SPC at Eficode. He has several years of experience with DevOps transformation especially in the telco industry, and He also worked as an assessor, trainer, facilitator, and coach in test automation and testing process improvement areas, during the last 24 years Szilard is very involved in the testing community. He is active in International Software Testing Qualifications Board (ISTQB) working groups and a member of the Hungarian Software Testing Board (HTB). For many years, Szilard have been working on and supporting conferences like HUSTEF, UCAAT, and EuroSTAR, and Eficode's very own DEVOPS Conference. In his personal life, he enjoys kayaking on the sea, playing with LEGO and being tested by his teenage daughter 🙂 |  |
| 10.40 Carl Gustaf Testauksen johtamisen näkökulma Tiedolla johtamisen SOTE -projekteihin (FIN) Sanna Meriläinen, Gofore Sanna on Goforella laadunvarmistuksen vanhempi konsultti. Sannalla on noin 20 vuoden työkokemus, jonka aikana hän on tehnyt monipuolisesti testauspäällikön, lähiesimiehen, projektipäällikön ja konseptoijan työtehtäviä. Sanna on työskennellyt sekä monikansallisissa projekteissa yksityissektorilla, että kotimaisissa julkishallinnon hankkeissa. Vuodesta 2017 lähtien Sanna on keskittynyt SOTE asiakkuuksiin ja koen niissä työskentelyn merkityksellisenä. |  |
| 11.20 Auditorium GenAI: is it your new API Test Automation peer? Joel Oliveira, Celfocus "There is more than one way to do it, but do it right the first time!" - Joel Oliveira Joel Oliveira's career has been a thrilling journey through the exciting world of software development. With over two decades of experience, he has tackled a variety of roles, including developer, tester, technical and project manager, quality and engineering manager, and everything in between. Throughout his career, Joel has led teams of engineers in a diverse range of industries, from telecommunications to government, finance, defence, and aerospace. Driven by his dedication to improving the recognition and proficiency of the testing community, Joel founded the first online testing community in Portugal in 2009 and went on to establish the PSTQB – Portuguese Software Testing and Qualifications Board the following year. His expertise in the field has earned him a place in the ISTQB working groups since 2011. As a mentor, Joel takes pleasure in sharing his experiences and knowledge with others. You can often find him giving talks and workshops on a variety of topics, including software testing (manual, exploratory, automation, mobile, performance, security), engineering processes (waterfall, agile, continuous improvement, and CMMI), and career management (for testers and beyond). |  |
| 11.20 Carl Gustaf Unlocking value through ATDD & UX Vilma Pohjonen, Eficode Vilma is a Senior Consultant at Eficode, specializing in helping clients optimize their processes and choose the right tools to achieve their goals. With a versatile background in DevOps, QA, and UX, she effectively bridges the gap between people, processes, and technology. Additionally, she is a passionate advocate for Acceptance Test-Driven Development (ATDD), aiming to improve product quality and promote collaborative teamwork. In her free time, she enjoys the challenge of jigsaw puzzles and the relaxation of swimming. Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vilma-pohjonen |  |
| 13.00 Auditorium Taking action to lead software testing Kari Kakkonen & Marko Rytkönen, ACT2LEAD Mr. Kari Kakkonen has worked in software testing for almost 30 years. He is the co-author of ACT 2 LEAD Software Testing Leadership Handbook. Kari is the 2021 EuroSTAR Testing Excellence Award winner, Tester of the Year in Finland Award 2021 winner, and DASA Exemplary DevOps Instructor Award 2023 winner. He is the CEO of Dragons Out Oy, created for a fantasy book to teach software testing to children, but now delivery more books and training and consulting services. Kari Kakkonen delivered trainings, consulting, and coaching at Knowit in Finland 2002-2024. He has M.Sc. from Aalto University (aalto.fi). He works mostly with agile testing, lean, test automation, DevOps and AI. Kari has almost 30 years of testing experience, 15 years of agile experience, 10 years of DevOps experience and 5 years of AI experience. He's been working in ICT consulting, training, finance, insurance, pension insurance, public sector, embedded software, telecom, gaming, and industry domains. Kari was on the Executive Committee of ISTQB (istqb.org) 2015-2021. He is on the Board of Directors of TMMi (tmmi.org). He is the Treasurer of FiSTB (fistb.fi). He is the co-founder of FiSTB Testing Assembly, the biggest testing seminar in Finland, for which he has been a co-organiser for 10 years. Kari is a singer, snowboarder, kayaker, husband and dad. Kari has given public talks and is a passionate advocate for software testing and QA. He is active on LinkedIn and welcomes you to network. Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karikakkonen/ |  |
| Mr. Marko Rytkönen has worked in software testing for almost 30 years. He is the co-author of the ACT 2 LEAD Software Testing Leadership Handbook. Currently, he is a QA coach for Hidden Trail. Marko has exceptionally wide expertise in testing and QA. He has worked for over 20 years in global product companies with known brands and over 5 years in consulting companies. He has led subcontracted Chinese, Indian, Slovakian and Finnish testing teams. He has been responsible for improving testing practices at the IT department level (100’s of apps and 10’s of teams). He has worked as a line manager for testing teams of up to 55 people and led a multi-million Euro global testing consultancy business. His speciality is to help his clients lead and improve testing practices at company, department and program levels. Marko has done voluntary work for the Finnish Software Testing Board (FiSTB) as its board member. He is the co-founder of FiSTB Testing Assembly, the biggest testing seminar in Finland, for which he was a co-organiser for 10 years. Marko has given public talks and is a passionate advocate for software testing and QA. He is active on LinkedIn and welcomes you to network. Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markorytkonen/ |  |
| 13.00 Carl Gustaf When you're done with AI, here's what you can do with ML Bardhyl Shatri, VALA Group I am a Physics graduate with four years of experience in test automation across diverse industries, including medical and industrial sectors. Throughout my career, I have held various roles such as Test Manager and Test Automation Engineer. My passion lies in automating tasks to enhance efficiency and reliability. I am particularly keen on leveraging machine learning to further advance test automation processes and optimize performance outcomes. |  |
| 13.40 Auditorium The only constant in a changing world is failure Anssi Lehtelä, SOK Anssi has been in life a bit over 40, in sw development a bit less than 20 years. He likes testing, ensemble programming, and team work. He also likes to think, study and talk failures; done by himself, the team he works with, or by humanity in general. And football. |  |
| 13.40 Carl Gustaf Quality Assurance and testing <3 competence development Mikko Paloheimo, Osuuspankki Mikko is Expert QA Lead and Chapter Lead at OP Financial Group in Helsinki Finland. Mikko has been around in testing industry since 2007 and has been involved in different positions from testing to test management and a lot in between. Last years Mikko's focus has been much on quality assurance and testing competence development and skills sharing. |  |
| 14.50 Auditorium Code or Low Code - Navigating the Test Automation Options Maaret Pyhäjärvi, CGI Maaret Pyhäjärvi is an exploratory tester extraordinaire and Director, Consulting at CGI. She is a tester, (polyglot) programmer, speaker, author, and a community facilitator. She has been awarded prestigious testing awards, Most Influential Agile Testing Professional Person 2016 (MIATPP) and EuroSTAR Testing Excellence Award (2020), Tester Worth Appreciating (2022), and selected as Top-100 Most Influential in ICT in Finland 2019-2023. |  |
| 14.50 Carl Gustaf Business continuity in an unpredictable world Tuomas Leppilampi, Hidden Trail Seasoned professional in all things software. QA entrepreneur for 12 years, DevOps lead for 5 years, R&D applications owner for 10 years. Developer experience and agility front runner. Currently diving deep into the challenges of new testing paradigms regarding non-deterministic software-under-test and all kinds of QA exploration capabilities. |  |
| 15.50 Keynote, Auditorium Achieve success with Chewbacca's lessons! Joonas Suotamo Joonas Suotamo is a Finnish actor and basketball player who has risen to worldwide fame in the Star Wars saga, playing the role of Chewbacca. Joonas' stories about Hollywood celebrities are unique to the Finnish. Who among us would have had the opportunity to act alongside Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Emilia Clarke or Woody Harrelson in an international production, or to call Disney or Lucasfilm their employer? But long before he became a flying furball in space, Joonas worked for years in international performances as both a basketball player and a movie student, and rooted himself in Finnish society as an entrepreneur and reserve officer. Joonas is an inspiring and unique speaker, with a unique perspective on both the entertainment industry and the business world, understanding both the everyday life of a Finnish small business owner and the laws of Hollywood business. Joonas' story inspires and entertains and he is ready to tell his own story of how far you can go with courage, openness and a twinkle in the eye. |  |
