APAC CIO Outlook
  • Home
  • CXO Insights
  • CIO Views
  • Vendors
  • News
  • Conferences
  • Whitepapers
  • Newsletter
  • Awards
Apac
  • Agile

    Artificial Intelligence

    Aviation

    Bi and Analytics

    Big Data

    Blockchain

    Cloud

    Cyber Security

    Digital Infrastructure

    Digital Marketing

    Digital Transformation

    Digital Twin

    Drone

    Internet of Things

    Low Code No Code

    Networking

    Remote Work

    Singapore Startups

    Smart City

    Software Testing

    Startup

  • E-Commerce

    Education

    FinTech

    Healthcare

    Manufacturing

    Retail

    Travel and Hospitality

  • Dell

    Microsoft

    Salesforce

    SAP

  • Cognitive

    Compliance

    Contact Center

    Corporate Finance

    Data Center

    Data Integration

    Digital Asset Management

    Gamification

    HR Technology

    IT Service Management

    Managed Services

    Procurement

    RegTech

    Travel Retail

Menu
    • PropTech
    • Microsoft
    • Procurement
    • Managed Services
    • Cyber Security
    • Gamification
    • Blockchain
    • CRM
    • Software Testing
    • E-Commerce
    • Low Code No Code
    • MORE
    #

    Apac CIO Outlook Weekly Brief

    ×

    Be first to read the latest tech news, Industry Leader's Insights, and CIO interviews of medium and large enterprises exclusively from Apac CIO Outlook

    Subscribe

    loading

    THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBING

    • Home
    • PropTech
    Editor's Pick (1 - 4 of 8)
    left
    IP - Powering the Future

    Robert Bollard, CIO and General Manager Innovation & Technology Group, IP Australia

    Proptech: Why It's All About the Customer

    Mark Hansen, Chief Information Officer, DEXUS [ASX: DXS]

    The Rise Of Data in The Infrastructure Sector

    Dan Kieny, SVP/CIO, Black & Veatch

    Know Your Rights Before Buying a Residential Unit in a Mixed-use Project

    Florian Maier, Managing Director, Antares Group

    Emerging Technologies Are Turning Proptech Upside Down and Inside Out

    Stan Fung, Managing Director, Drum Tower Ventures

    Australian Property: The Exception or The Rule?

    Paul Gambles, Managing Partner, MBMG Group

    PropTech's Growing Impact on Real-Estate

    Linda Rudd, Partner and Head of Asset Management Services, Knight Frank Australia

    Trends in Design and Construction

    Patrick Keane, Director, Enter Projects

    right

    To Automate or Not To Automate?

    Ruslan Desyatnikov, CEO, QA Mentor

    Tweet
    content-image

    Ruslan Desyatnikov, CEO, QA Mentor

    It’s not possible to work in software quality assurance and not have heard about automation. Some people swear by it and recommend automating everything possible; others feel that leaving the human, manual element is more effective, even if it is less efficient.

    Automation vendors are going to sing the praises of automation, for certain, but just how can automation help you, if at all? Should you automate it or not? Is it worth the time, money, and effort to find, buy, utilize, and maintain automation tools?

    Unfortunately, the answer isn’t simple. There are many ways that automation can help, and ways that it cannot. Some projects will do better with automation, and for others it could be a waste of time. Some types of testing must be automated, while for others it’s far more difficult. How do you know if it’s right for your project or organization?

    Determining if Automation Can Benefit you

    Before deciding to automate, you should look at your current project status to determine if automation could help you at this point. Consider the following questions:

    • Do you have a lot of frequent regression cycles to run?

    • Do you have a stable GUI but frequent code changes?

    • Are you using a waterfall approach where changes are delivered all at once?

    If the answer to any of those questions is yes, then automation should be strongly considered. You possibly have both the need and a good foundation for automation. Regression tests are the most ideal candidates for automation since they are generally stable tests and re-run frequently. If your regression test cycle consumes more time than you think it should and it’s being performed frequently, then automation may help reduce the testing cycles.

    Automation also works best for applications that have a fairly stable user interface. If your user interfaces changes frequently, then most of the automation tests will need to change frequently as well. This is why it’s recommended that the GUI is stable before embarking on automation. If there are future plans to change the GUI, then it might be beneficial to hold off on the automation until that’s complete.

    Determining if Your Team is Ready

    You may have a need for automation, but what about your team? A successful implementation requires a significant resources, time, and skills.

    • Do you have a solid, comprehensive, and easy-to-understand manual test repository?

    • Do you have the budget for a tool purchase?

    • Do you have staff with the skillset to utilize automation tools (free or otherwise)?

    • Do you have the budget for staff training or new hires?

    • Do you have the time to dedicate to getting automation off the ground?

    • Do you have the time to dedicate to automation test maintenance?

    Finding the right tool for the job takes time, and the tool identified may be expensive. There are free tools out there, but they may or may not be suitable for your

    project. Having the budget ready to handle the possible purchase is ideal.

    Existing staff skills, training, or new hires are also a significant consideration. All of these contribute to the time necessary to automate, the budget required, and the amount of effort involved.

    Common Problems

    The problem many QA Organizations encounter is one of assuming automation will be the answer to all of their problems without realizing the amount of effort that must go into a successful automation endeavor. Teams must be able to effectively use resources and time, select a tool appropriate for their project(s), and have the skill set available to use the tool correctly and efficiently.

    Incorrect Tool Selection

    Sometimes budget drives what tool is purchased and the one selected may not be the right one for the project. The right tool is critical to the success of automation. Taking cost out of the equation, the tool selected must be compatible with the test environment, development languages, and the testers that will be using it.

    Thorough research should be performed on available tools and hours of demos may be necessary if you are selecting the tool yourself. The alternative is to bring in automation consultants to evaluate your development and test environment, style, and staff skill levels. Outside experts can provide a team with years of experience to counsel them on the right tool for their particular project. While there is certainly an expense involved in that route, the benefits are even greater. By utilizing expert advice you can drastically cut down on the research and demos needed to evaluate tools yourself as well as the risk of trial and error failures.

    Inadequate Staff Skills

    Another common issue with failed automation endeavors falls into the domain of staff skills and by extension, staff training. Once a tool has been purchased, the team needs someone with appropriate skills to use the tool. Learning automaton takes time and training, and far too often businesses lack one and forgo the other. This can create a heavy burden on the tester or testers tasked with implementing automation.

    For automation to be successful, either a member of the team needs to have existing automation skills and experience, or one or more team members need to be trained. Training can be done by the publisher of the selected tool, external workshops, or automation consultants brought in-house for a short period of time. Regardless of which way is chosen, training is necessary for successful automation.

    Aiming for 100 percent Automation

    Some teams aim too high and expect that they can automate every single aspect of testing. This is not the case, and believing it is only sets teams up for disappointment. Automation implementation is a process that takes time, and that requires manual tests be done in conjunction.

    Some areas of the application under test may not be suitable for automation, or may require manual reviews of data, such as reports. Also, new functionality must be tested manually and made stable before automation can be introduced. Generally speaking, regression tests are most suitable for automation.

    Keep your expectations in line with automation capabilities to reduce stress and disappointment. Aim to automate regression tests first, then look to what else might be a candidate for automation. But, don’t expect that manual testing is in the past no matter what your automation goal is.

    Poor Test Design

    In some ways, this does relate to the skills of the testers on the team. Test design is really an art t h a t requires experience and patience. While some testers can both design and engineer automation tests, doing so could be a bit daunting.

    Poor test design can make tests ineffective and difficult to maintain. A good suggestion would be to divide the automation tasks up. Have one tester (or group of testers) work on test design, while other work on engineering the tests. This helps to divide up the work effort and allow testers to focus on one specific aspect – and in the process get very good at it.

    Neglecting Maintenance

    Another misconception about automation is that once the tests are written, they don’t need to be touched any longer. In reality, automation test maintenance is an ongoing process. Changes to the system require that tests be reviewed, updated, or even eliminated from the repository. Failing to do this will cause failed test runs and expand the time of the testing cycle.

    Automation decisions should not be taken lightly. It’s not suitable for all projects, especially those in their early, unstable stages. But for the projects and teams that are ready, it can be extremely useful and helpful to find defects faster and reduce testing cycle times. For it to be successful, an investment of time, money, and staff is required. As long as you go into it with your eyes open and with proper expectations, deciding to automate will be a major boon to your QA department.

    Weekly Brief

    loading
    Top 10 Proptech Solution Companies - 2020

    Featured Vendors

    ZWEISPACE Japan

    Hayato Kameta, CEO

    AES Technologies

    Henry Tan, Founder

    ON THE DECK

    PropTech 2020

    Top Vendors

    PropTech 2019

    Top Vendors

    Previous Next

    I agree We use cookies on this website to enhance your user experience. By clicking any link on this page you are giving your consent for us to set cookies. More info

    Read Also

    A dose of our own medicine

    A dose of our own medicine

    SABINA JANSTROM, IT DIRECTOR, DYNO NOBEL
    Insider Threat

    Insider Threat

    AI is America's best weapon for disrupting health inequities

    AI is America's best weapon for disrupting health inequities

    Michael Dowling, President & Ceo, Northwell Health and Tom Manning, Chairman, Ascertain
    Combating IoT Challenges with Smart Choices

    Combating IoT Challenges with Smart Choices

    Sandeep Babbar, Head Of Technology Innovation, Gwa Group Limited
    Artificial Intelligence regulations and its impact on medical devices

    Artificial Intelligence regulations and its impact on medical devices

    Leo Hovestadt, Director Quality Assurance Elekta
    Blockchain: promises to revolutionise superapps and the trust factor in insurance

    Blockchain: promises to revolutionise superapps and the trust factor in insurance

    Sue Coulter, Head of Group Digital, AIA Group Julian Lo, Director of Digital Engineering, AIA Group
    Data as a Business

    Data as a Business

    Ricardo Leite Raposo, Director of Data & Analytics at B3
    How Digital Transformation Impacts Big Data Analytics

    How Digital Transformation Impacts Big Data Analytics

    Davide Di Blasi, Global Quality and Lean Director , Hilding Anders International
    Loading...

    Copyright © 2023 APAC CIOoutlook. All rights reserved. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy and Anti Spam Policy 

    |  Sitemap |  Subscribe |   About us

    follow on linkedinfollow on twitter follow on rss
    This content is copyright protected

    However, if you would like to share the information in this article, you may use the link below:

    https://proptech.apacciooutlook.com/cxoinsights/to-automate-or-not-to-automate--nwid-384.html