How To Overcome The Pitfalls For Test Automation

The user experience thus derived from quality is largely shaped by the seamless functioning of the product or service across a range of device platforms, operating systems, configurations, and networks. Since validating the quality of such products or services in the shortest possible time is beyond the capability of manual testing, the industry has adopted test automation in a big way. Moreover, to address the objectives of Agile and DevOps based product development, businesses willy-nilly have to embrace test automation solutions in their testing cycle. It is worth noting that fixing glitches after a product or service goes live is many times more cost-intensive than fixing them during the SDLC.

However, implementing test automation in the SDLC needs to be executed after careful deliberations, for there can be myriad pitfalls. These can do more harm than good and should be avoided at any cost. Since QA automated testing ensures the quality of software application, it should not be implemented in a hurry. Remember, the pitfalls, if not nipped in the bud, can let the overall cost of testing to balloon beyond a point where they can impact the bottom line. So, as the adage goes, ‘well begun is half done,’ your test automation strategy should be devoid of the following pitfalls.

# Going overboard with testing: Since automation in testing is about creating test cases and checking their outcomes against set parameters by using an automated tool, testers can end up creating more test cases. In such a scenario, the test cases often execute the same function and become redundant. QA experts should understand that creating more test cases than needed would entail more effort and cost on maintenance. Moreover, there would be greater chances of such cases failing with time.

# Reducing the number of testers: Businesses are of the view that creating and implementing a test automation strategy would mean the testers can be dispensed with. Thus, with the implementation of automated testing, testers are often shifted to other departments, trained for other assignments or simply let off the rolls. In the absence of a dedicated number of testers, the automation testing approach would be geared more towards confirming the seamless functioning of the product rather than finding ways where the product might fail.

# Checking instead of testing: The tool used in automated software testing does not necessarily investigate any hidden bugs but determines results based on a series of ‘yes’ and ‘no’ questions. Thus, the process is more oriented towards checking than testing, resulting in hidden glitches escaping unnoticed. Moreover, since the automation tool does not take into consideration inputs like user stories, product specs given by the client, or info about rival products, the test automation strategy becomes limited in its scope. In such scenarios where multiple inputs are received from sources, QA testers should execute a series of activities. These include analyzing data, designing or redesigning tests, identifying the features that need automation, etc. It is only after considering the above-mentioned inputs that a suitable tool should be chosen to obtain a glitch-free software.

# Automating all tests: In order to accelerate the time to market, deliver better user experiences, check out more scenarios, or test product changes, test automation experts often conduct automated tests on different servers. This delays the feedback loop as testers find it difficult to manage so many tests within the scheduled time frame. In the final analysis, this delay impacts the schedule of the final product delivery. Such a situation can be easily avoided by segregating the tests according to manual and automated testing. For example, load and performance testing, regression testing, endurance testing, structural testing, and functional testing should ideally undergo test automation. On the other hand, manual testing is more suitable for security testing, exploratory testing, usability testing, and configuration testing.

Writing the code: There will be times when test automation experts need to write the code to check the passing or failing of test cases. This can be a tall order. To avoid such a situation, use a tool with a feature wherein testers need not write the code but enter the keywords. The tool would then execute the rest on its own.

Conclusion

Automation testing can be a cost-intensive exercise, especially at the initial stages. So, it should be implemented with due consideration for the above-mentioned scenarios. Should the pitfalls be avoided, the final outcome will be glitch-free.