About

I’ve been working with the software development and testing industries for over 17 years.

Over that period of time I’ve been fortunate to work with some very gifted professionals and been a part of many exciting and interesting projects for some amazing clients and brands.  Everything that I’ve experienced in my career as a QA professional – the good and the bad – has resulted in my approach, methodologies and execution that I apply today in all my QA engagements.  I’m still learning with each client and project that I work with, this is something that is important to me.

I enjoy all aspects of software testing; the management and leadership; the mentoring and education that I can offer my teams, and the opportunities that allow me to continually learn; the planning and project management aspects, and the hands on test execution (even more so now that I’m involved with Information security, penetration testing and ethical hacking).

Being a part of the software testing and development industry has put me in touch with some gifted and talented people, it’s one the main reasons I continue to enjoy this job each day.

I don’t think I’ve ever met a single test professional who decided at a young age that they wanted to be a software tester; every successful test analyst and QA leader that I’ve worked with seems to have fallen into testing; it’s something that we seem to have a natural aptitude for.  Back in the day I was a construction surveyor setting out buildings and features on large scale construction projects in London.  I grew slightly wary of the industry as it wasn’t the safest place to be – I saw numerous accidents and close calls,  so when a friend asked if I wanted to work as a video game tester, I felt it was worth looking into.  Being paid to play games? Best job ever!  Well, it was the best job up to a point, but when I spent weeks playing the same levels over and over again of a genre I didn’t particularly enjoy, the job lost a little of its attraction.  What it did open my eyes to was that I really enjoyed testing software, and learning how it worked.  From this point I moved into web testing, then back into games for a few years, this time as lead test/test manager.  After this I landed in a position that allowed me to test websites, web applications and video games, and it was here that I really grew as a QA professional and test leader.

Since then I’ve worked in many different industries – still within software testing, and I can’t see myself moving away from it for many years.  It was over 6 years ago that I decided to move from the safety of permanent employment into the world of freelance QA, a move that I have never regretted.  The sheer amount of knowledge and experience that I’ve acquired since then allows me to offer QA consultancy to a wide range of clients, industries and disciplines whilst still finding that I’m enjoying every project and engagement.  Work shouldn’t feel like work, and I find that it rarely does.

I’d love the chance to chat with you about your testing and software delivery requirements, please contact me to kick off those discussions.  I can work on-site or remote, I have my own testing hardware, devices and test laboratory, equally I can use your hardware if corporate policy dictates so.  I look forward to talking with you.

Paul Nisbett: QA Consultant