The Verify/ATI Conference is a joint effort being conducted by two organizations that have taken a leadership role in the realm of testing and test automation.
Verify is an organization that has delivered several highly respected conferences addressing topics in software development, testing and security. The Automated Testing Institute (ATI) - with its online reference site, magazine, common body of knowledge and a community of thousands - is an organization that has taken a lead role in providing a comprehensive source of software test automation information to the IT community.
Together, these two organizations promise to deliver a conference that is timely, relevant, and of the highest quality. Specific, notable individuals within these groups that are organizing the conference are:
Elfriede Dustin, Verify, Conference Co-Chair
Elfriede Dustin is considered a leader in the automated software testing industry. She's authored various white papers on the topic of automated software testing, as well as the book Effective Software Testing. Elfriede was also the lead author of Automated Software Testing and Quality Web Systems, and co-author of Testing SAP, The Art of Software Security Testing and her latest book, Implementing Automated Software Testing (co-authored with IDT CEO Bernie Gauf and IDT co-worker Thom Garrett). All books have been published into various languages and are available world-wide. Among her many accolades Elfriede has also graced the Automated Software Testing Magazine with multiple contributions on the topic of software test automation. Elfriede has over 20 years of IT experience, implementing effective testing strategies, both on Government and commercial programs, and currently works for IDT (www.idtus.com) – an innovator in automated software testing solutions. Elfriede is also on the ATI's Test Automation Body of Knowledge (TABOK) board.
Dion Johnson, Automated Testing Institute, Conference Co-Chair
Dion Johnson has 15+ years of experience in providing IT services to both government and private industry in a manner that has demonstrated expertise in multiple areas of the software development lifecycle. With a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, he has spent much of his professional career as a consultant in the areas of quality assurance (QA), quality control (QC), software process improvements, requirements analysis and software test automation. As a regular conference speaker and presenter, Dion has delivered award winning and highly acclaimed presentations at many of the most prestigious industry conferences, including the StarEast and StarWest International Conference on Software Testing, Analysis and Review, the Quality Assurance Institute Conference and Better Software Conference. He teaches college and business level classes relative to testing and test automation, and has several published articles in various IT publications, including the Automated Software Testing Magazine for which he is the Managing Editor. Dion is also a lead advisor for the Automated Testing Institute, serves on ATI's Test Automation Body of Knowledge (TABOK), and is the Managing Editor for the TABOK Guidebook.
Thom Garrett, Verify, Conference Co-Chair
Thom Garrett has twenty years of Information Technology experience in planning, development, testing and deployment of complex processing systems for DoD and commercial applications. He has experience in managing and testing all aspects of large scale complex networks used in 24/7 environments. Thom currently works for Innovative Defense Technologies (IDT), LLC, and has previously worked for companies such as America Online (AOL), Digital System Resources (DSR), Inc., and Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), supporting system engineering solutions from requirements gathering to production roll-out. Thom received a B.S. degree in Mathematics / Computer Science from Virginia Commonwealth University and a M.S. degree in Information Systems from the University of San Francisco. He is co-author of the book Implementing Automated Software Testing.
Christine Johnson, Automated Testing Institute, Conference Manager
Christine Johnson has nearly a decade of experience in communications and event planning experience. She has experience planning events such as birthday bashes, expos, technical training events, weddings and showers. Additionally, Christine has worked in the area of human resources. All of these experiences have provided her with a unique ability to effectively work with people while assessing and meeting their needs in an organized, systematic, professional manner. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree that she obtained from the University of Maryland at College Park.