Automation Adoption

One of the basic challenges with test automation is adoption. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve cataloged licenses for a company and found out they already have many different automation software packages, none of which is being used. Traditionally I’ve been told that is because the tools don’t work and that the teams had a hard time implementing the automation.

Let’s take one thing off the table, there is NO tool problem. Most automation tools do the same thing, catalog objects, record and playback and advanced scripting abilities, so, please, if you trying to organize an automation project, don’t make it about a tool (I think I’m famous for saying this, since tools are only means to an end, they aren’t panaceas, in fact that’s the last thing they are).

Second, the problem is people, not tools. Most testers do not have the skill sets to program in one these monster packages like QTP. They are put in front of a complex IDE and expected to scale that tool with relative ease. Problem, most testers don’t know how to program or haven’t in so long that there skills are completely inadaquate to the task. My experience is that to get a line engineer to learn how to program effectively takes 18 months, I’m sure I have some aghast looks here, but to be “proficient” is a complete different level of understanding then just “‘grinding” through a software package and hoping your developing scalable automation.

Some of the new tools are trying to divide the effort between automation engineers and line test engineers. QTP has designed a keywork abstraction for their automation tooling. It’s quite complex, but I feel that they are going in the right direction. If you can pair up your subject matter experts with QC Component test automation experts, then you might have a scalable solution, but too many don’t go down this path.

What do I suggest?

  • Select a test design process
  • Organize the effort around mini-pilots
  • Don’t buy tools if you don’t need to, lease them at first
  • Understand your teams skill sets – this metric sets adoption

Good luck
 

LogiGear Corporation

LogiGear Corporation LogiGear Corporation provides global solutions for software testing, and offers public and corporate software-testing training programs worldwide through LogiGear University. LogiGear is a leader in the integration of test automation, offshore resources and US project management for fast and cost-effective results. Since 1994, LogiGear has worked with hundreds of companies from the Fortune 500 to early-stage startups, creating unique solutions to exactly meet their needs. With facilities in the US and Vietnam, LogiGear helps companies double their test coverage and improve software quality while reducing testing time and cutting costs. For more information, contact Joe Hughes + 01 650.572.1400

LogiGear Corporation
LogiGear Corporation provides global solutions for software testing, and offers public and corporate software testing training programs worldwide through LogiGear University. LogiGear is a leader in the integration of test automation, offshore resources and US project management for fast, cost-effective results. Since 1994, LogiGear has worked with Fortune 500 companies to early-stage start-ups in, creating unique solutions to meet their clients’ needs. With facilities in the US and Viet Nam, LogiGear helps companies double their test coverage and improve software quality while reducing testing time and cutting costs.

The Related Post

The guide for CUI Automated Testing strategies, including chatbot testing and voice app testing. In the Software Testing industry, trends come and go that shape the future of testing. From Automation in Agile, to the DevOps era we are now in, trends are what evolve and improve our testing processes and ideologies. Currently, many researchers ...
LogiGear Magazine – March 2011 – The Agile Test Automation Issue
We’re excited to share with you the latest and greatest features of TestArchitect Gondola, as well as how to use them. So, check them out below! Gondola Studio UI/UX ImprovementsGondola Studio’s new Test Execution Dialog makes it easy to configure and run your test. You can choose the browser or device you’d like to run ...
I feel like I’ve spent most of my career learning how to write good automated tests in an Agile environment. When I downloaded JUnit in the year 2000 it didn’t take long before I was hooked – unit tests for everything in sight. That gratifying green bar is near-instant feedback that everything is going as ...
Mobile usage today is not just a trend but it is an essential shift in how people communicate with each other, interact with the world, and do business. According to a ComScore, in 2014 the number of mobile users surpassed the number of computer users and is showing strong growth over time, towards some point in ...
It can be complicated to automate model-based testing. Here’s how to employ action words to get the job done.
Automated Testing is a huge part of DevOps, but without human-performed quality assurance testing, you’re increasing the risk of  lower-quality software making it into production.  Automated Testing is an essential DevOps practice to increase organizations’ release cadence and code quality. But there are definitely limits to only using Automated Testing. Without human quality assurance (QA) ...
There are few topics in quality assurance testing that cause as much confusion as smoke testing versus sanity testing. The two names would seem to describe very different practices— and they do! But people still get them confused, since the distinction is somewhat subtle.
I recently came back from the Software Testing & Evaluation Summit in Washington, DC hosted by the National Defense Industrial Association. The objective of the workshop is to help recommend policy and guidance changes to the Defense enterprise, focusing on improving practice and productivity of software testing and evaluation (T&E) approaches in Defense acquisition.
Introduction A common issue that I come across in projects is the relationship between test automation and programming. In this article I want to highlight some of the differences that I feel exist between the two.
Developers of large data-intensive software often notice an interesting — though not surprising — phenomenon: When usage of an application jumps dramatically, components that have operated for months without trouble suddenly develop previously undetected errors. For example, the application may have been installed on a different OS-hardware-DBMS-networking platform, or newly added customers may have account ...
LogiGear Magazine January Trends Issue 2017

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Stay in the loop with the lastest
software testing news

Subscribe