About me

I’m Steven Burton, Director of Technology at CDS, a technology consultancy that advises, builds, protects and runs critical digital services. I live and work in Leeds.

From testing to technology leadership

I studied Computer Science at university and started my career as a tester at a medical company. Testing taught me the habits I still rely on: ask awkward questions early, care about the whole system rather than your corner of it, and judge work by the difference it makes to the people using it.

Over more than a decade in testing and quality I worked across many teams and roles — hands-on testing, test automation, continuous delivery pipelines, and leading quality in agile teams. I was a Senior Consultant at Infinity Works, wrote for Ministry of Testing and TEST Magazine, and spoke and participated in the testing community in Leeds and beyond.

These days my scope is broader: technology leadership, engineering strategy, delivery, consulting, and helping people grow their careers. The instincts are the same ones testing gave me — they just apply to bigger systems now, most of which are made of people.

About this site

Between 2017 and 2021 I blogged as Testers find a way — the name was a nod to finding a path through whatever a project throws at you, and the old masthead was a signpost on the Cleveland Way. That writing lives on here as an archive, kept as originally published. New writing covers the wider ground above.

Elsewhere

Find me on LinkedIn, or browse my published articles.