The Challenges of Creating Automated Test Scripts (And Ways to Overcome Them)
Automation isn’t a trend. It’s a necessity. Advancing competition, diminishing software development lifecycles (SDLC), decreasing talent pools. These made software test automation services the prerequisite for anyone who participates in the never-ending race to the ultimate quality.
The combative IT landscape rushes businesses to adopt automation. And not everyone is prepared to promptly handle its integral challenges. Let’s discuss what developing a productive automation process really is and how you can conquer upcoming hardships.
Challenges of Setting Up an Automation Process
If you’re trying to set up or optimize your software testing automation, you’ve likely encountered some of the following difficulties.
- Finding the right script automation tools that fully correspond to a specific application under test and limiting QA to scriptless test automation.
- Establishing effective collaboration to set up effective automation, continuously improve it, and advance the product.
- Fixing test script issues due to the required complex coding skills to design and maintain automation frameworks.
- Selecting a proper testing approach to create and maintain optimal automated test scripts.
- Handling sync issues that cause script failure when an expected event is delayed or does not occur.
- Lacking automated testing expertise to design and maintain automation frameworks and test scripts.
- Missing automated testing infrastructure, e.g., hardware/software resources to support automation testing.
However, these challenges are often too amplified. The actual issues you should focus on are:
- Finding or cultivating proficient experts.
- Establishing effective collaboration.
- Setting up a proper automation process.
When you achieve all three, you won’t have to worry about the bulk of problems that appear with automation testing services. Now, let’s explore how you can do that.
Challenge #1: Finding the Right Experts
First, you need to have a standardized set of values, mission, and vision for your project. Then, your search for the perfect team will follow an established structure and become more effective.
Amplify Your Search
Use different sources for candidate search, such as job boards, social media platforms, and professional networking sites. Additionally, consider partnering with IT recruitment agencies or outsourcing companies specializing in IT talent acquisition.
Improve Candidate Engagement
Create a recruitment process that’s streamlined and efficient. Communicate clearly with candidates about the hiring timeline and next steps. Promptly follow up with candidates and provide regular updates throughout the process to keep them engaged and interested.
Stand Out as an Employer
Focus on building a strong employer brand. Highlight your company’s unique culture, benefits, and career growth opportunities. Offer competitive compensation packages and provide a positive candidate experience throughout the recruitment process.
Streamline Your Interview Process
Identify key stages and eliminate unnecessary steps. Conduct efficient and focused interviews that assess the candidate’s technical skills and cultural fit. Consider using technology such as video interviews or coding assessments to expedite the process.
Build a Productive Interview Procedure
Ensure clear and timely communication with candidates throughout the hiring process. Provide feedback promptly after interviews and keep candidates informed about the status of their application. Establish open lines of communication between recruiters, hiring managers, and candidates to avoid any misunderstandings or delays.
Target Suitable Talent Pools
Utilize various sourcing strategies, including online job boards, professional networking sites, industry-specific forums, and tech communities. Consider attending tech events, conferences, and hackathons to connect with potential candidates. Building relationships with universities and coding boot camps can also help you tap into emerging talent.
The journey of finding “your” people is especially challenging for startups. But even larger organizations face difficulties when trying to locate needed specialists in the modern IT world. So, an always-beneficial option is partnering with a QA company to support your efforts.
Challenge #2: Securing Effective Collaboration
Making a group of people into a team is probably the toughest undertaking. It’s also the most rewarding. How you approach this stage will decide your product’s fate.
Choose the Right Collaboration Software
There are many collaboration software options available, including communication, project management, and team collaboration tools. Consider the features, pricing, and integrations of each option to determine which one best suits your company’s needs.
Establish Clear Communication Channels
Ensure that team members have access to the necessary communication tools and establish communication guidelines. Encourage open discussions and make sure team members know the project’s goals and objectives.
Encourage Teamwork & Collaboration
Foster a culture of collaboration and encourage team members to share ideas and work together to solve problems. Build a sense of shared responsibility and ensure that team members understand each other’s roles, responsibilities, and impacts.
Provide Training & Support
Set up proactive education to empower team members to harness the full potential of all resources. Offer ongoing training and support to ensure team members are up-to-date with the latest technology and best practices.
Establish Clear Project Goals & Objectives
Make sure that team members are working towards a common goal. Everyone should know the project’s timeline, milestones, and deliverables. Establish a project management system to track task progress and meet deadlines.
Encourage Feedback & Continuous Improvement
Secure productive and effective collaboration. Regularly solicit feedback from team members and use it to improve collaboration processes and tools. Motivate team members to share their ideas and suggestions for improving collaboration.
Challenge #3: Setting Up the Automation Process
Building up the automation process affects each aspect of your business:
- How your experts work.
- How they collaborate.
- How each task is carried out.
- How effective the production becomes.
- How fruitful your venture will be.
There’s no perfect formula to secure success. It’s like with the Agile methodology: its textbook version isn’t supposed to be replicated to the T. Instead, there’s a “core” around which you can assemble your optimal pipeline. To do that, focus on the following impact points.
Appropriate Automation Tools
What works for most might be a disaster for you. Choosing the right testing tools isn’t picking the most popular or familiar options. Of course, your team should be comfortable with their equipment. But it shouldn’t compromise the effectiveness of automation (e.g., overreliance on scriptless automation).
Depending on your project’s characteristics and technological landscape, opt for tools that align seamlessly with your testing requirements. Thoroughly assess your project and research the tools (and their combinations) that best fit your needs.
Incremental Automation
The notion of “starting small” with automation is often misunderstood. You shouldn’t automate simple tests to see how it works. Before your team starts automated testing (AT), there should already be a specific plan. Usually, AT should begin with the most repetitive tasks (to unload the crew) and the most vital functionalities (to secure business-crucial features).
Don’t rush to automate everything. Start with tests that will amplify the efficiency and stability of your automation efforts. When you are sure in your AT foundation and know how to move forward – expand automated test cases to increase coverage.
Productive Collaboration
Close collaboration between specialists produces better results. That single fact is one of Agile’s pillars. Informative discussions are instrumental in ensuring alignment between your tests and the project’s objectives. So, you should establish communication procedures, schedules, and formats that are most productive for your team and product.
More specifically, there needs to be close collaboration between developers, QA engineers, and business analysts. A unified and clear understanding of testing prerequisites, anticipated outcomes, and potential edge cases will strengthen the SDLC and the outcome.
Clean Software Testing Scripts
The devil is in the details. To avoid misunderstandings, missed opportunities, and delays, QA engineers need to write automated test cases that are easy to grasp and maintain. This means creating automated test scripts that are understandable for everyone, i.e.:
- Descriptive names.
- Detailed instructions.
- Organized structure.
QA test scripts should not look like Enigma code because someone wanted to save time or secure own comfort. So, strive to establish systematic guidelines that shape each test. The same goes for developers. Adherence to set coding standards will ease their job (as they know exactly what and how to present) and raise product quality.
Precise Assertions
Related to the above, automated test scripts’ assertions should be as exact as possible. They determine how an automated test case determines the scenario as passed or failed. Say a test is well written, structured, reusable, and so on. If it doesn’t have proper assertions, it’s useless.
So, QA specialists need to ensure that the assertions are precise and address relevant facets of the application’s behavior. The team can also leverage libraries provided by testing frameworks to enhance assertions’ clarity.
Strategic Prioritization
Avoid putting off complex scenarios – they will slow down the SDLC and discourage the team in the long run, and QA specialists might have to go back and forth fixing or adjusting presumably stable cases due to the alterations in more intricate tests or suites.
Always look for chances to optimize automation. Focus on automating tedious cases, complex scenarios that take a lot of effort, error-prone tests, etc.
Careful Management of Test Data & Environments
Have a robust strategy for handling test data and environments. If these two are all over the place and have no maintenance protocol, QA test scripts will become messy. For example, the team can:
- Use mock data or test databases for consistent test execution/reduced production data impact.
- Rely on sandbox environments or dedicated test servers to avert conflicts in UI tests.
- Benefit from stable version control.
Adequate test data and environment management will advance cases’ accuracy, reproducibility, scalability, and security.
Regular Test Maintenance & Enhancement
Don’t forget that automated tests are forever only if they are properly maintained. QA specialists need to sustain the scripts’ relevance by consistently updating them. Any changes and evolving functionalities need to be reflected in meaningful case adjustments.
Also, seek avenues for refining the structure, readability, and efficiency of the test scripts. Motivate feedback exchange between departments to refine and elevate automated test cases.
Lastly, remember to continually enrich the team’s product knowledge by keeping everyone informed about the development process, features, and strategic plans. This holistic understanding will contribute to more informed decisions and optimal outcomes.
To Sum Up
Automation is not a silver bullet. In a way, it has become a culture. A culture that promotes collaboration, productivity, and unceasing optimization. And for it to work for you, you need to nurture it. Yes, this software parenting can be overwhelming. But done right, it’ll be the greatest asset for your business.