Would you like to know how Quality Sense Conf 2023 is redefining the IT industry? Dive into the stories of our speakers and discover how this event is helping to position Latin America as a leading digital hub in the world.

In the wake of Quality Sense Conf 2023, we’ve taken some time to reflect, and the excitement still lingers. It’s palpable and continues to resonate. We experienced two full days of knowledge, learning, networking opportunities, and enjoyment.

What did we aim for with this event? To continue broadening access to knowledge so that the IT community can develop professionally every day. And, thus, to continue positioning Latin America as a digital hub in the world, in relation to the development of quality software.

We celebrated the 2nd edition of the event on November 9th and 10th: the first day virtually, with the attendance of more than 1220 people; and the second day in-person in Santiago de Chile, Chile, with around 200 attendees. We enjoyed talks from a variety of speakers from different parts of the world.

We addressed a wide range of topics: functional and non-functional testing in different contexts, test automation, observability, and mechanisms to maintain our applications with high-quality standards, performance, accessibility, and, Artificial Intelligence.

Not only do we feel happy and full of enthusiasm for everything we were able to experience during the event, but also for the journey taken to get here, all the repercussions in our industry, and everything that comes next.

“What an amazing week we lived in Chile. Quality Sense Conf was incredible, I couldn’t ask for more. The talks were excellent, and the networking spaces worked. We do this from the heart and with conviction, and I think it showed. I am happy because I saw all the people around enjoying, connecting, learning… It was magical, that’s how I experienced it, and I have no doubt that the people who attended experienced it in the same way,” expressed Federico Toledo, co-founder and Chief Quality Officer of Abstracta.

“Next year we have already confirmed that we will have another Quality Sense Conf. It will be in Colombia”, he anticipated. “I am very grateful to the team with whom we carried all this forward, with the speakers, with the sponsors, and with each person who helped to spread the word. Without all that support this would not have been possible”.

Mauricio Rojas Lagos, CEO of Abstracta Chile, deepened: “At Abstracta, we are fully convinced of the tremendous human potential of those who are part of our company. Every day we try to demonstrate it in everything we do, with our services, with our clients, and in the communities with which we interact”.

“We culminated the Quality Sense Conference 2023 with a wonderful team that provided support, drive, and determination to carry out this international event,” he emphasized.

“We hope that the participants, sponsors, clients, speakers, and friends have felt the affection that we wanted to deliver at every shared moment. Thank you to all of them for their support and presence. See you at QSC Colombia 2024!“, he concluded.

Are you subscribed to our YouTube channel? We recorded all the talks and they will be online soon!

In The First Person

After receiving, literally, hundreds of messages, and not knowing how to convey such emotion in a single article, we decided to interview our speakers and sponsors, to tell us about their experiences in the first person. 

– Why did you decide to participate as a speaker at QSConf 2023? Were your expectations met?

Damián Pereira (Endava): I decided to take part in the event to be able to share TestCraft and some of our learnings in building it with the Latam Testing community. My expectations were greatly exceeded.

Giuliana Bentancor (Endava):  I had the opportunity to participate as an attendee at QSConf 2022 with a very good experience. The talks were very good, and the atmosphere. I met people very willing to lend a hand at that time. For that reason, I did not hesitate to try to get involved in some way in the 2023 edition. That’s where both my talk and the sponsorship came up. The collaboration, the event, everything went great, so yes, my expectations were met.

Gabriela Pírez (Abstracta): Because my career transition to the IT industry transformed me not only professionally but personally and I always felt a need to be able to tell my process to help and inspire others. That’s why, when Fede invited me, I couldn’t refuse. Not only were my expectations met, but they were exceeded.

Valentina Tortarolo (Abstracta – CUTI): I’m always happy to take part in events in any role. It seems to me that it adds a lot. But regarding QSConf in particular, the answer is simple: I was invited by Federico Toledo.

Jonathan Guajardo (Abstracta): My expectations were absolutely met. Meeting other people who have similar interests in technology, and on how the latest advances are impacting us on a daily basis. Moreover, the knowledge of experiences left me quite nourished with ambitions and wanting to continue participating in this model of continuous learning.

Leandro Melendez (Grafana K6): Truthfully, out of appreciation for the Abstracta team and to help the testing community of Latin America.

Andrew Knight (Cycle Labs): Fede invited me. When Fede asks, I answer and rise to the challenge. Abstracta made it easy to record and upload my session.

Charlie Wells (Datadog): Abstracta is a newer partner working with Datadog in Latin America and our businesses and customers are highly aligned. We were excited to help support and become a positive contributor to this exciting community and I was personally excited to share a perspective on the role testing and observability play in helping to craft and deploy quality software.

The event exceeded my expectations in terms of production, logistics, attendance, and the quality of the speakers. I’m honored and grateful to have been a part of this event!

Jenifer Sanchez (Sutherland):  Participating in the QS conference was for me a valuable opportunity to highlight the maturity in testing knowledge that exists in the region. In addition, it represented an open door for other participants who, from their own knowledge, could contribute significantly. My expectations were exceeded from the start of the organization process to the close.

Fernando Rivas (Abstracta):  I had the opportunity to see some conferences from QSConf 2022, and when they offered me to participate in QSConf 2023, I simply could not pass up the opportunity! It represents a conducive space to give visibility to what we do, share experiences, exchange impressions, and call for community-building.

Vania Bordoli (Talento Digital): From Talento Digital, we are happy to have a space to talk about the jobs of the future and the impact of technologies and with this be able to tell about our innovative initiative and its social impact. 

Patricio Miner (Free Range Testers): I decided to participate for the community itself and to collaborate with the growth that Latin America is having in this sense. My role as a mentor of thousands of people does not exist in isolation from the entire community, and it is always nice to be able to participate in these initiatives.

Yoshie Garcés Rodríguez (Chattigo): I decided to participate because for me it is important to share knowledge and experiences especially in Spanish. What better opportunity than this? In addition, it was a challenge on a personal and professional level, to contribute to the testing community. My expectations were not only met but exceeded.

Diego Molina (Sauce Labs): I participated as a speaker at QSConf 2023 to share knowledge with Latin America and I appreciated participating in a conference led by Federico. The experience exceeded my expectations thanks to the quality of the discussions and interaction with the audience.

Mercedes Quintero Martínez (Qualitas Test Team): I participated in QSConf 2023 because, since its inception, it has become a crucial platform for openly disseminating knowledge about software quality, a topic I am deeply passionate about. This year, the challenge of talking about leadership in software testing beyond management, motivated me to adopt a new approach, but as always, using books or movies for analogies of our daily life in testing. I feel a great alignment with the conference because just as it seeks to enrich knowledge and unify communities, it also focuses on including other audiences such as CTOs, technology leaders, developers, marketing areas, and human talent areas, among others.

The conference has evolved to encompass different and diverse roles, highlighting the importance and the fundamental nature of software testing in industries across all latitudes. I had no expectations! I feel they limit me. So instead, I went with goals and a great purpose, which were fully met.

Fabian Baptista (Abstracta): I proposed myself to attend the AI table to share some experiences and leave a message that I think is important to leave to those who have not yet gotten involved.

Andréi Guchin (Abstracta): I am convinced that JMeter DSL is a very useful tool and I think it is necessary to give it more dissemination, particularly in Latam. The event exceeded my expectations, the production was excellent, the friends from Chile received us in a very good way, I saw people very enthusiastic and eager to learn and share.

Matías Reina (Abstracta): To be able to share the vision that we have with JMeter DSL and as there are many paths to improve the performance of our systems.

– What sensations or emotions did you experience in this event? Was there a moment that was particularly memorable or significant to you?

Damián Pereira (Endava): Going up on stage to give my presentation in front of so many area references was exciting (and a bit scary). But the most significant thing was all the people I was able to meet and the relationships that were created during those days.

Giuliana Bentancor (Endava): I enjoyed the event, the talks, and networking with other people in the area and even with my own Endava teammates but in a different environment. The entire host team was always very kind, inclusive, and willing to help.

Gabriela Pírez (Abstracta): I had many feelings. At first, I was nervous because it was my first experience participating in a panel at an event of this type. Even so, from the first moment, I felt very contained and supported. This made everything much easier and more natural and we were all happy with the result.

Memorable moments? All of them! The previous talk to get to know each other was fundamental, and when we recorded the panel it was very nice because we could all connect from different places with the motive of the panel, and it flowed so much that the time passed very quickly.

Valentina Tortarolo (Abstracta – CUTI): The energy and the atmosphere that was generated were very nice. Our talk was recorded, but before we had a virtual meeting to get to know each other and it was a very special moment. The recording instance flowed very well because we had connected before I think.

Jonathan Guajardo (Abstracta): Yes, the moment when they took the talk to a success case or an experience. In this way, the content is transmitted but, just like in mathematics, the results are seen applied in a practical exercise, in this case, they were the experiences.

Leandro Melendez (Grafana K6): Not many because I was not very present during the event. But the previous period, the hype that was generated looked incredible. It made me feel sorry not to be able to participate.

Andrew Knight (Cycle Labs): I was delighted to participate!

Charlie Wells (Datadog): It was a joy to get to know the Abstracta team a bit better and meet the interesting members of the testing community. The energy and enthusiasm of the participants were very motivating and in particular, I found the one-on-one conversations between and after sessions to be very engaging and memorable. I look forward to staying in touch with the individuals I met at the conference.

Jenifer Sanchez (Sutherland): I found profound meaning in Darrel Farris’ conference, as he provided an enlightening perspective on the components that make up a quality culture. His clear vision of how to carry out tasks really adds value to our work and achieves a harmonious balance between tools and collaborators. In addition, I experienced an environment of trust thanks to the human warmth that emanates from the Abstracta team.

Fernando Rivas (Abstracta): I was very moved by Damián Pereira’s presentation on how they created a product supported by Artificial Intelligence, not only because of the emotion of creating a product but also because it is a great example of how Artificial Intelligence democratizes software creation.

Vania Bordoli (Talento Digital): I loved the connection we had in the panel humanizing all this change given the AI and the opportunities that open up for people.

Patricio Miner (Free Range Testers): Given that I live in New Zealand, the issue was very asynchronous in my experience as I was either sleeping or working while it was happening. I couldn’t see much and I’m waiting for the videos to be available to see the entire conference.

Yoshie Garcés Rodríguez (Chattigo): My most memorable and significant moment was the whole process of creating the talk. It was a challenge to make it, record it, and plan it, and the greatest emotion I experienced was when the talk was on air.

Diego Molina (Sauce Labs): The experience of connecting with the Spanish-speaking audience during the talk was rewarding, creating a special connection. Reading positive comments after the presentation was nice, highlighting the interaction and resonance that the talk had with the audience.

Mercedes Quintero Martínez (Qualitas Test Team): I went through various emotions, from happiness and stage nerves to gratitude. For me, it was an absolutely rewarding experience. As a speaker, I felt very well-received and welcomed. The logical sequence of the talks, each one connected to the previous one, gave us speakers many possibilities during our talks and I find that significant for everyone, as it enriches the talks. We had the opportunity to interact with different experts in the world of testing, both in virtual and in-person sessions. Additionally, networking with sponsors and guests was a memorable moment that generated very powerful links.

Fabian Baptista (Abstracta): I really liked Fede’s final talk to motivate building together from trust and sharing knowledge. The visit to the winery and the after-event was also memorable, there were many exchanges and very nice networking.

Andréi Guchin (Abstracta): During the whole event I felt very happy and happy. I met industry colleagues that I hadn’t seen in a long time and had the opportunity to meet others. A significant moment for me was when I met a colleague with whom I had been working together but always remotely in person.

Matías Reina (Abstracta): The feeling of being in a community built on trust, passion for the topic, and wanting to share and learn about software quality. Fede’s final talk was very inspiring. Seeing and hearing people’s reactions to their comments, seeing that capacity to inspire, and building the future together filled me with pride.

– Is there any learning you would like to share or any future action you plan to implement as a result of your participation?

Damián Pereira (Endava): The biggest learning I take away is the value of sharing and creating community. I plan to collaborate and work on things with several of the people I met at the conference.

Giuliana Bentancor (Endava): I really liked the closing with the final idea of Fede’s talk, I think it encourages us to push our region more and I couldn’t agree more. So I think it motivated me to keep working towards that goal.

Gabriela Pírez (Abstracta): I liked being able to participate in the panel because it allowed me to open up to the possibility of participating more in this type of event, and being able to tell my experience to help and inspire others.

Valentina Tortarolo (Abstracta – CUTI): I really liked the possibility of participating in the QSConf virtually. I had never participated in that modality, and I found it very interesting.

Jonathan Guajardo (Abstracta): I would like to understand better what is happening with the ITSM methodology or framework, I think the future is moving there and I want to be a procer in the matter.

Charlie Wells (Datadog): The positive feedback from this presentation encourages me to continue to refine it to share with others in the future!

Jenifer Sanchez (Sutherland): I have learned that the collective knowledge generated by sharing personal experiences can have a much more significant impact in practice than simply relying on documentation. I will of course put it into practice, I will be more connected with my old and new colleagues from now on.

Fernando Rivas (Abstracta): I discovered that many difficulties we face in our jobs, although they may seem very particular, are actually shared by many and that sharing these experiences helps us all.

Vania Bordoli (Talento Digital): Even before the panel, we were already taking action for the incorporation of generative AI in our programs and the connection between companies and graduates.

Patricio Miner (Free Range Testers): A calendar event as a placeholder for those of us who give talks from abroad, to be in sync with the exact hour and day we connect would be good. In my case, I created an event since I’m a day ahead, against the clock, and that’s always confusing when it comes to video calls.

Yoshie Garcés Rodríguez (Chattigo): I learned a lot especially the experience of the people I shared with. I liked a talk that we are reviewing with my team to implement it, in which she talks about Healenium.

Diego Molina (Sauce Labs): My experience at the event was enriching, connecting with the audience, and motivating me to participate more actively in future events in the region.

Mercedes Quintero Martínez (Qualitas Test Team): I continue learning about the stature we have in LATAM, from speakers, attendees, and sponsors, about how each one contributes from their knowledge to the dissemination of software quality and the overall growth of society. This goes beyond AI and emerging technologies which, of course, were part of the conferences. The plan now is to hold the Quality Sense Conf 2024 in Colombia!

Fabian Baptista (Abstracta): Keep in touch with the people I met to explore collaborations and joint actions.

Andréi Guchin (Abstracta): I took a lot of ideas, in particular, I am going to get much more into AI applied to performance and observability. I also stayed in touch with several people to do things together in the future.

Matías Reina (Abstracta): I would like to boost the performance services to help have better performance in the developments that are made in the region.

– If you had to define your experience at the event in one sentence, how would you do it?

Damián Pereira (Endava): It was a highly enriching experience from beginning to end, where I met wonderful people and relationships were created that I’m sure will last over time. I return with a renewed impulse to continue creating and sharing knowledge, and to continue establishing the Latam testing community as a reference at a global level.

Giuliana Bentancor (Endava): An extremely inspiring and motivating experience.

Gabriela Pírez (Abstracta): Exciting.

Valentina Tortarolo (Abstracta – CUTI): Short!

Jonathan Guajardo (Abstracta): Growth.

Leandro Melendez (Grafana K6): Wonderful to collaborate and meet the community and presenting friends.

Andrew Knight (Cycle Labs): Delightful.

Charlie Wells (Datadog): This was a wonderful opportunity to participate in a vibrant community event, learn from smart people, and have fun while doing so!

Jenifer Sanchez (Sutherland): Quality Sense conf was a canonic event for me, as it taught me to value the spirit of collaboration and the genuine will to do things right.

Fernando Rivas (Abstracta): Connecting with people passionate about software quality, both experts and people who are just starting, is very motivating.

Vania Bordoli (Talento Digital): A very nice initiative of connection, I am left with the impact on organizational culture and people associated with this transformation.

Patricio Miner (Free Range Testers): Despite its magnitude, the Quality Sense feels “close” to the experiences and people who exhibit. That is something very valuable these days and is much appreciated by the audience.

Yoshie Garcés Rodríguez (Chattigo): Impressive, nutritious in terms of knowledge, and welcoming, from everyone.

Mercedes Quintero Martínez (Qualitas Test Team): Weaving knowledge with life experiences that test the world.

Fabian Baptista (Abstracta): An experience to take a break, share, and enjoy encounters with people with similar interests.

Andréi Guchin (Abstracta): It was a great opportunity to connect with people in the area, learn new things, and show what we are doing over here. These instances are fundamental to strengthening the community and realizing the capacity and experience we have in Latam.

Matías Reina (Abstracta): A trusting environment in which to share our learnings and future visions to make it possible.

Sponsors

As expressed by Federico Toledo in his final talk at the event, “A big part of what gives value to the conference are the talks and networking spaces, but we wouldn’t achieve any of that without the support of the sponsors who trust in our proposal.”

Therefore, we especially thank their support, to jointly push towards the same objective: the growth of the testing community in Latam.

Next, we share the testimonials of some of the sponsors of Quality Sense Conf 2023, who helped turn this idea into a reality that exceeded all our expectations. 

Crowdar

“We had participated in last year’s edition in Montevideo without being sponsors, and seeing the level of the event encouraged us to sponsor this year. Our expectations were exceeded: we met our commercial objectives, we did a lot of networking, we were nourished by the talks, and we had a good time among friends.

We forged relationships, brought in new contacts, generated content and the Crowdar Academy scholarship draw gave us the possibility to develop a greater presence in the Chilean market.

From now on, we would like to be sponsors of QSConf 2024 in Colombia.”

Endava

“We consider Quality Sense Conf to be one of the best testing conferences in Latin America. Both for the quality of its talks and speakers, organization, and reputation of the people who organize it as well as those who participate.

The conference was very good from many points of view. The quality of the talks showed that it is a reference place in Latam. It touches very current and useful topics for anyone who wants to keep up to date in testing or who is taking their first steps.

The entire host team was super pleasant from the very beginning, and the atmosphere that was created during all those days among those of us who attended could not have been better. We met a lot of people, learned, and shared knowledge and concerns about our industry.

It serves us a lot to participate in and disseminate the QSConf as it is a point of reference from which our testers can understand what the trends in testing are and meet referents from Latam in our practice. It is also very useful for us to encourage our people to give talks, expose themselves in front of other colleagues, and show the knowledge we have to offer.

It is an invitation not to stay in our comfort zone and continue exploring the new technologies, tools, and good practices that we can adopt from getting involved in communities like this.

Without a doubt, we want to continue accompanying and be sponsors of QSConf 2024 in Colombia, because we want to continue supporting the conference and the testing community in Latam. Also, because we have 2 offices in Colombia, Bogotá, and Medellín, with 120 testers throughout the country.

We would like to encourage and promote the participation of our people in the conference, either as speakers or listeners. And, why not, also participate in WOPR 2024.”

Grafana K6

“We decided to be sponsors of QSConf 2023 to support the initiative and to increase Grafana’s recognition in LatAm. The atmosphere and energy of the event was great.

As long as Grafana approves the budget, we would very much like to be sponsors again in 2024, this time in Colombia, as I believe it is an excellent opportunity to increase knowledge of observability in multiple areas such as testing, throughout LatAm.”

“We like to be part of this event because it allows us to forge important networks and relationships with high-level people and companies in the IT area. QSConf 2023 showed us the great talent that exists in Latin America, and how important it is to make a community, share, and learn from others. An event like this is enriching for both those who attend and those who give talks or our sponsors.

For QA Minds to be a sponsor of QSConf 2023 had a positive impact. It allowed us to forge networks and branding. As a result, we made good relationships and created new links. Our participation allowed us to realize how we are perceived and how we can help grow the testing community in Latin America.

We would very likely like to be a sponsor of QSConf 2024 in Colombia.”

Softesting

“We decided to sponsor QSConf2023 as an event focused exclusively on Quality Engineering in the Latin American environment. Although there are events with this focus, they are usually far away in their locations, which makes access difficult.

Our participation was not in person, but only virtual. This aspect seems very relevant to us as it breaks down physical barriers to participation.

We consider that by being a sponsor we are obtaining the benefits of expanding our visibility within the Latin American software quality industry. However, being recent, we are still analyzing how participation impacted the reach of our brand.

We are interested in reviewing the sponsorship scheme again for QSConf2024 in Colombia and also being speakers, as is our country we will surely be able to take advantage of the event in a better way.”

Datadog

“Abstracta is a strategic partner for Datadog, we have advanced in our partnership and we believe that this event delivered valuable content for the attendees.

It was a great experience. Being the first one we participated in, it exceeded our expectations. We managed to connect with companies that have already interacted with Datadog but are part of other departments and can find different solutions depending on their area.

Concerning QSConf 2024, in the future, we will continue to advance and support future events.”

Background: Quality Sense Conf 2022

With more than 15 years of existence, at Abstracta we are characterized by the continuous search to learn and improve permanently, and to share our knowledge and experiences.

The immediate prior precedent to this wonderful edition of the event is the Quality Sense Conf 2022, the first edition of the event. We carried it out in Uruguay, also for free, and with speakers from different parts of the world.

After its great impact, we decided to start a tour of the event through Latin America.

The first destination chosen for this was Chile, where we celebrated the event this year. Why there? We have a close connection with Chile as since 2019 we formed Abstracta Chile, led by Mauricio Lagos, and since then we have a large part of our team there, as well as many of our clients.

Through Abstracta Chile, we have been contributing to the development of the software quality community constantly since its birth. Not only for the results achieved at the event but also for the journey taken together.

The next destination will be Colombia, where our partner Qualitas Test Team is located, led by Mercedes Quintero. Later, we plan to land in Mexico (perhaps in 2025), where there is a very strong community and we have very good links, which could help us generate a quality instance.

In the future, we have the idea of taking the conference to the United States and in Spanish, with mainly Latam speakers, to bring the values and objectives of our conference there.

The truth is that our presence in events is not something new: from our beginnings, back in 2008, we always made a lot of focus on participating and organizing different types of events in our industry, as well as managing different types of spaces to share knowledge and empower our community.

Some examples include: 

✅We co-founded TestingUy, the largest testing conference in Latam. 

✅We founded Abstracta Academy, which offers advanced courses from a great team. Repeatedly, we offer these courses for free as part of different social initiatives. 

✅We co-founded Nahual Uruguay.

, an educational and social project. 

✅We published “Introducción a las Pruebas de Sistemas de Información”, the first book in Spanish that focuses on technical aspects of testing, authored by Federico Toledo. Over time, it has become a reference book for the testing community and is used as study material in university courses in Latam and Spain. You can download it for free!

✅We gave talks at prestigious testing events in the United States, as well as in different countries in Europe and Latam, such as StarEast, CMG Impact, Selenium Conf, Apache Con, Agile and DevOps East, WOPR, VLCtesting, ExpoQA, QA&Test, Agile Testing Days, Argentesting, Testing Day Chile, Nerdearla, TestingUy, Encuentro GeneXus, and many more.

✅We created the Quality Sense podcasts together with our Chief Quality Officer (CQO) Federico Toledo, and The Everything Else, with our Chief Culture Officer Vera Babat, in which we share valuable knowledge regularly and get to know different industry leaders.

✅We hosted the prestigious WOPR event in Uruguay, in its 29th edition, which represented the first time it was held in Latin America. Additionally, we were again the host of WOPR, WOPR Latam, for the first time in Spanish. It was organized by our CQO, Federico Toledo, and the leader of our performance hub, Andréi Guchin.

All these types of instances help us to build global bridges and the IT community gains value, learnings, and connections that favor the development of the industry, and maximize its impact on our society.

Did you attend Quality Sense Conf and would like to share your testimony? We would love to hear your opinion!

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