4 Phases of Automation Testing

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This Week Expert Spotlight Jon Robinson

Hello automation enthusiasts!

In the latest Test Guild Automation Podcast episode, host Joe Colantonio sat down with Jon Robinson as we talked about we practical strategic approaches including the 4-phase model—Discovery, Design, Develop, Deliver—and the importance of a maturity model to ensure your automation aligns with CI/CD integration. We'll highlight how automation serves as the backbone for regression testing, providing substantial long-term benefits and how pushing it later in the development process can minimize rework and costs.

Key Takeaways

1. Embrace Storytelling: Jon emphasizes the importance of storytelling in effectively communicating the value and impact of automation testing. By wrapping personal commentary and specific examples around your automation journey, you can better connect with stakeholders and showcase the successes and challenges faced along the way.

2. Dispel Automation Misconceptions: One of the biggest misconceptions about automation is that?it's?a magic bullet that will solve all problems overnight. Jon highlights the need for proper planning, goal setting, and understanding?the?maturity continuum to ensure the success of automation initiatives.

3. Focus on the Right Metrics: Instead of solely relying on the number of bugs found during development, Jon suggests focusing on the bugs that escape into production. By measuring the severity and impact of these issues, you can gauge the effectiveness of your automation efforts and continuously improve.

4. Treat Automation as a Development Project: Jon recommends treating automation tools and frameworks as their development projects, with dedicated owners and responsibilities. This approach ensures better management, maintenance, and continuity, even in the face of team changes.

5. Plan Before You Automate:?Jon's?best advice is to resist the temptation to automate for the sake of automating. Investing time and energy upfront to establish a clear plan and goals will save you from unnecessary headaches?down the road.

6. Follow the 4 DDDD Approach

• Discovery: The phase where teams assess the current state of testing, define goals, and identify the scope for automation.
• Design: In this phase, a plan is laid out regarding how the automation framework will be structured, along with the selection of the appropriate tools and technologies.
• Develop: Here, the actual creation of the automation scripts and testing frameworks takes place based on the design phase's specifications.
• Deliver: This is the phase where the automated tests are executed, and results are delivered. It also involves maintaining and updating tests as necessary.

Test Everything, Keep the Good

For more insightful conversations with testing and automation experts, subscribe to the Test Guild Automation Podcast.

As always, test everything and keep the good!

Cheers

Joe Colantonio

Host, Test Guild Automation Podcast

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