Approaching test automation development

In today's fast-paced product development, test-automation is one of the key to drive the organization's ability to satisfy customer expectations. Which is nothing but to deliver the product with high quality and with no surprises! and secondly and most importantly in a timely manner. Many organizations have therefore realized the importance of automation and are approaching it. My motto for this article is to share and give insights on what I have learned along the way so that it is approached in the right way from inception.

Firstly, before starting any test-automation project, the organization should first list-down the objectives that they wish to achieve with test-automation. An aim could be to increase the agility of software development by reducing the regression test-cycle and to improve their competitive edge. Another aim could be to do in-sprint automation giving developers the confidence of their active development, thus enabling continuous testing. Laying down the goals beforehand will guide management and leads with their future decisions. Thus, ensuring that they do not deviate away from the goal they envision.

Another important aspect is the organizational culture. Everyone i.e developers, subject-matter experts, testers and automation engineers should be beforehand aligned to the vision. They need to be educated on how test-automation will contribute to the vision and what roles they are going to play as part of it. Giving this clarity beforehand ensures that everyone will be an effective and productive contributor. For instance, there will be no insecurities. Some testers quickly assume test-automation as a replacement for manual testing. In fact, they are the most important drivers of the project because they define the quality checks that the automation scripts are going to make. It is therefore important that they embrace test-automation and contribute with full potential.

Now coming to developers, probably they are the ones who receive the most benefit out of test-automation, as they get quick feedback on their mistakes. The test automation pyramid guides that the major bulk of automated tests are implemented at the lower level so that the bug is caught quickly and is less costly. Developers, therefore, play an important role in automating unit/api tests. They can also assist in keeping the automated features in sync with the product. This will make them more conscious about their change and give them responsibility for the product's quality.

Subject-matter experts role equally plays a crucial role. They are the ones who will guide testers in prioritizing the most important and key use cases, as automating any and every test is not feasible. Exception to this, of course, are the domains that are contractually required to be tested with high accuracy such as healthcare, airplanes, military, etc.

Automation engineers, in my opinion, are the powerhouse of this project. They possess both testing and technical skills which is typically required in test-automation. They can contribute to the automation of UI workflows while allowing testers to focus and analyze other risks. Another key contribution that an automation engineer makes is finding gaps in scenarios. Or finding bugs that could not have been reasonably found. Essentially, the sole (automation) responsibility ensures that the scripts are always (during commercial pressure) aligned with the features and the investment done over time remains fruitful.

In conclusion, a test-automation project should begin with a vision and thereafter that should lead the future decisions to ensure no deviation. Also, a healthy work culture should be established to support in achieving the vision. Enlightening everyone about the value that they bring in will ensure that all participants will work in collaboration and set up a foundation that will go a long way.

Thanks for your time and I wish you all the best with the journey!

Credits: Grammarly helped me documenting this article with minimal effort. I could focus solely on my thoughts, while Grammarly proactively checking my typos and grammar mistakes.