Curriculum Vitae - Vincent Dirks

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Welcome to my cv, it's a wiki and I think that's pretty cool. I'd love your feedback.

If you're looking for the NZCovid Tracer QR code generator you can find it here
Name Vincent Dirks
e-mail vincent@dirksonline.net
Address Kelvin Rd
Remuera
Auckland 1050
Mob 021-0269-6216
LinkedIn nz.linkedin.com

Intro - I'm a Full Stack Agile Quality Analyst

I love testing anything, and I'll use whatever resources and tools I can lay my hands on to do it. Every delivery team has different constraints, skills, processes, bottlenecks and opportunities for how they deliver product changes. I'll use the skills and resources already in the team, add my own skills and experiences, maybe sprinkle on some ideas from the test, agile, and dev communities, as well as some plain experimentation, to best test and deliver the product and process changes. Each context is different and I love adjusting the development, test, and delivery processes to match them to the context at hand. I like exploratory testing, and I also have fun coding automated checks. I do gravitate towards Context Driven Testing (CDT), and tend to agree with the thoughts and expressions from the leaders of the CDT community, such as James Bach and Michael Bolton. I really like Agile, which for me is "autonomy with responsibility through trust".
I think the essence of software development is still about people: It is Driven by people, Made by people, and Made for people. We all have emotions, passions, motivators, and more! We're all different, and we all have something unique to give.
I love to work with people that have a passion for what they do, and have fun doing it! Testing is my professional passion, and I love working with people who respect and challenge me to be my best.

Summary Skills Matrix

Testing API Testing, Context Driven Testing, Risk Based Testing, Tool Assisted Exploratory Testing, Test Planning, Visual Modelling, Session and Thread Based Testing, Gherkin, Behaviour Driven Development, Metrics Driven Development, AB Testing, Mobile Testing, Mentoring & Induction, UAT, Firmware Testing.
Automation Fiserv (3.3yr): Postman & Newman, JavaScript(Node.js, Express.js, Pug), TFS, Powershell, SpecFlow & C#, SoapUI, SQL.
Trade Me (2yr): SoapUI/Groovy scripting, SQL, Protractor, XPATH & CSS locators.
LeasePlan (2yr): VBA/Access, SQL.
Programming Javascript (Node.js, Express.js, Pug, Cypress.io, Webdriver.io), Java (Selenium, GWT, Robotics, JUnit), SQL, C#, Powershell, C, C++
Miscellaneous Splunk, Squad master, CI/CD, Deploy lead, Product demo's, Training, Manufacturing Resource Planning, Logistics, External Relationships, Radars, Lasers, Fibre-optics, Physics, Robotics, Statistics

Work Experience

Contracting as Software Tester, Engineer, Quality Analyst (May-2020 - Current)

Working on a number of projects until I find my next paid full-time gig. Drop me a line if you have any kind of testing work.
As per my LinkedIn post, whilst I have time, I'm happy to work pro bono for charities, any struggling businesses, and for new startups with cool new ideas.
I'm also stepping up my work for the Ministry of Testing - Auckland Branch in my role as a lead coordinator. setting up the new wiki, as well as hosting & documenting workshops like Ali Haydar's API Mocks and Testability
A fun little Javascript project I've been tinkering on is a webapp to generate a QR Code for the NZ Covid Tracing App. I think the government has made it far to cumbersome for people to be able to obtain QR codes, but go to my webapp, enter your preferred details, and you can scan it with the govt's app.

Test Engineer - Fiserv (Jan 2017 - Apr-2020)

References
2020 Fiserv - Piyush Dungrani - LinkedIn recommendation
2020 Fiserv - K Vaughan Kaufman - KvK Consultancy
Fiserv Auckland produces mobile apps for 2000+ banks (8M active users), as well as the multi-tier web and API integration servers that interface to core online banking systems and third parties. Our solutions are configurable with varying degrees of customisation of features and branding. The banking domain is very strict and risk averse! Reliability and quality are particularly important. I've found testing our product complicated, difficult & challenging.
  • (2019-2020) - Sole developer of
  • (2017-2018) - QA member of agile teams delivering changes to a range of mobile banking solutions.
Whilst working at Fiserv I worked with the following technologies
  • Postman/Newman/Javascript/TV4 JSON validator
  • Node.js/Express.js/Pug (Simple Web UI, Data API for test results, task scripting, data analysis)
  • Splunk (system monitoring, setup data collectors, creating new dashboards)
  • TFS (Git repos, build server, and script scheduling)
  • Powershell (System deployment automation & TFS)
  • Octopus (deployment engine)
  • Specflow/C# (Gherkin API automation)
  • Mobile functional, accessibility, iOS upgrade testing
  • Platform API functional testing
  • XMind (Mind Mapping Tool)
  • Fiddler/Burp Suite (Network capturing)
  • Soap UI (API testing)

Contracting - Engel Consulting (Sep 2016 - Dec 2016)

Helping Kim Engel with some smaller projects. see more...

Senior Software Test Analyst – Trade Me (Dec 2014 - Aug 2016)

References
2016 Trade Me Motors - Jason Cullum

Reference, Annual Review

2016 Mike Berry - Delivery Mgr
Part of small squad (cross functional agile team) testing software changes to the iconic NZ Trade Me website (Motors Group) covering
  • context driven, tool assisted exploratory testing, using session and thread based techniques
  • testing DB, UI, API, and architectural changes
  • leading the deployment of changes using Trade Me's continuous integration and continuous delivery processes
  • splunk system monitoring
  • agile methods and squad mastering
  • test automation for API (Ready!API/SoapUI) and UI changes (tractor/protractor) using BDD with Gherkin syntax.
  • test planning and peer test reviews
  • visual test tools (eg mindmaps for test planning and video capture of test sessions etc)
  • Jira for test plans, managing test sessions, and defect work flow. Confluence wiki for test practice documentation.
  • active contributor to test and agile guilds
  • new staff induction and junior staff support
see more...

Software Tester – LeasePlan NZ (Apr 2013 - Dec 2014)

Full time testing contractor to the IS department, testing a variety of bespoke applications primarily for internal use.
  • Complex quotation app for car leasing built in MS-Access
  • Online driver FBT data collection portal (UI, web security, data flows, emailing)
  • Character based legacy (AS-400) system testing
  • Developed a test automation framework for above character based system.
At LPNZ I was introduced to testing as a proper profession by my friend Christina Linwood. I attended the NZ Tester Magazine conference, and went to a full day workshop on Risk Based Testing by Matt Mansell. It was exhilarating to learn from people passionate about testing.

Prior to 2013

References

2020 Fiserv - Piyush Dungrani - LinkedIn recommendation
2020 Fiserv - K Vaughan Kaufman - KvK Consultancy
2016 Trade Me Motors - Jason Cullum - Reference - Annual Performance Review
2016 Trade Me Motors - Mike Berry
2009 Monitor Business Machines - Mike Ogram
2004 Bioengineering Institute (University of Auckland) - Simon Malpas
2001 Monitor Business Machines - Mike Ogram
1996 Carter Holt Harvey Tissue Group - Kerrin Thomson

Volunteering

  • Ministry of Testing - Auckland Branch - Member, Presenter, and Lead Coordinator (2014 - current)
  • SKC3.16 Saint Kentigern College Code Camp 2016 - Spent a weekend helping year 7-10 students learn about Agile and a bit of coding with their robots.
  • Eastern Suburbs AFC - Junior Girls Co-ordinator (2011-2014)
  • Glendowie Boating Club - Arrow Class Convenor (2011-2015)
  • MOTAT Tramways - Volunteer Conductor (2012-2014)
  • Eastern Suburbs Montessori Primary School - PTA Secretary/Chair (2011-2012)
  • Eastern Suburbs Montessori Primary School - Secondhand uniform exchange coordinator (2012 - 2013)

Continuing Professional Development

Since starting as a tester in 2013 I have been a keen attendee at many meetups, conferences, courses and meetings. These have been instrumental in helping me learn more as well as developing a good network of fellow test professionals in Auckland, New Zealand, and global test communities.
2016
2015
  • WeTest 2015 annual conference
  • Rapid Software Testing by James Bach (was awarded the coveted James Bach star) (3 day course)
2014
  • NZ Tester Magazine conference 2014 (2 day)
  • Risk Based Testing by Matt Mansell (1 day workshop)

Education

1993 ME (Elec) University of Auckland
  • Researching Laser Physics and Fibre Optics.
  • Courses in Digital Signal Processing and Digital Image Processing.
  • Telecom NZ Scholarship in Telecommunications Engineering ($10,000).
1991 BE (Elec) Hons. University of Auckland===
  • Specialising in Telecommunications Engineering covering Radio Systems, Microwave and Optical Engineering, Signal Processing, Communication Systems, and micro-processors.
  • Final Year Project implemented a software model of the human vocal cords.
  • Direct entry to first professional year of BE (Elec)
1988 Secondary School Dux Litterarum. Rutherford High School
  • Subjects Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Calculus, Statistics, (English, Accounting, Economics, Geography)

Presentations

2017
  • WeTest Auckland - 30-Nov-2017- What should testers know about A/B Testing? (also see blog for a copy of the slides)
2016

Blogs & Slides

2017
2016
2014

What I'm reading...watching...listening

Regular Podcasts & publications
  • TestTalks by Joe Colantonio (link TBD)
  • Testing Trapeze (link TBD)
in progress or on the to do list
Nov 2016
  • Social Lean Canvas a tool to help social entrepreneurs apply the rigours of Lean Startup to ventures that have social or environmental goals
Oct 2016

New things I'm learning and trying out

2018
  • Postman - developing a framework that allows orchestration of calls in any API endpoint collection to mimic a number of typical user sessions with Fiserv's mobile apps. Also designing it to be re-usable across many testing, certification, and production environments, and for any Financial Institution configured in those environments. Previous API automation suites were all close tied to a specific data configuration of a mocked environment, and could not be used in fully integrated environments.
2017
  • Primarily focusing on learning the product and testing domain as they apply to my new Test Engineering role at Fiserv
    • Extended internal SpecFlow (C#) suite of API automation checks for our interface with Card Services
    • Powershell scripts to help make manual deployments more efficient.
Dec 2016
Nov 2016
Oct 2016
  • bootcamp@elementalselenium.com
  • Selenium - setting it up on my mac with Maven. Exploring it with ole.saintkentigern.com.
  • Bootstrap - writing a static page showing 10 iFrames to show on a mobile - no joy so far
  • HTML - showing 10 iFrames side by side horizontally, one for each subject my son has at school.
Sep 2016
  • WikiMedia - using the wikipedia engine to set up this cvwiki and other wiki's
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