Lindsay Brown - Curiosity, Testing in Fintech, and Embracing Healthy Tension

About This Episode In the world of fintech, Square is a global leader. Their point of sale technology and services have enabled businesses across the world to succeed. And a global leader in fintech requires a global beta team, ready to test out new innovations and understand how to integrate with a multitude of financial systems and rules. And at the center of that team is Lindsay Brown. As global head of beta testing, she leads a team that tests from the US to Europe and Asia, working alongside their customers to ensure that Square powers their business effectively. Over five years, she’s grown her program’s adoption by 150%, scaled her team by four times, and helped modernize Square’s online beta testing community. And her passion for building incredible products, and leading a team effectively, really shone through during our conversation. Lindsay shared her wisdom on being curious, how she earned the title of “Queen of Feature Requests”, and why embracing healthy tension was vital for Square’s beta program. If you’re someone looking for another playbook on how to run an amazing beta program, it’s all right here. About Our Guest Lindsay Brown is the Global Head of Beta Testing at Square. Over the past 5 years, she's grown her beta program's adoption by 150%, scaled her team by 4x, launched Square in new markets in Europe, and modernized her online beta testing community. She is passionate about building valuable products for business owners, and creating a culture of collaborative conflict to ship superior solutions. Timestamps (0:00) - Intro (2:07) - Lindsay’s start at Square (7:00) - Global Testing, Localization, and QA (12:27) - Preconceptions and User Research (15:04) - How Square’s approach has changed over the years (20:44) - Leveraging “Healthy Tension” to enable success (22:26) - What launching with confidence means to Square (29:06) - Testing during COVID-19 (34:52) - How can AI affect the beta testing industry? (41:17) - How to break down silos within an organization (50:50) - Proper planning, tester engagement, and working with different financial regulations (1:02:24) - What does the future of beta testing look like? (1:05:41) - How has beta testing changed Square? Zero-Cost Resources and Guides Beta Test Planning Kit: https://bit.ly/sw_plan_kit Beta Recruitment Kit: https://bit.ly/recruit_kit Centercode Visual Theming Guide: https://bit.ly/visual_themes Beta Agreement Kit: https://bit.ly/agreement_kit The Beta Shipping Manual: https://bit.ly/ship_manual The Tester Engagement Pocket Guide: https://bit.ly/tester_map Beta Test Incentive Kit: https://bit.ly/incentives_kit Beta Test ROI Kit: https://bit.ly/beta_roi_kit The Definitive Guide to Delta Testing: https://bit.ly/guide_to_delta