Test Automation

Automated Tool Acquisition:

In recent years, automated test tools have taken the media forefront with an ever-increasing number of new products and upgrades to old ones. The wave of tool acquisition has been nothing short of phenomenal. Our observations suggest, in fact, confirm our approach to integration automation into your QA/QC processes. The ability to obtain the significant rewards available through automation rests with the planning and practices employed to use them. Preempting the establishment of effective test practices with an automated tool often results in unrealized benefits, frustration and eventual shelf-ware.

There are opportunities for integrating certain aspects of automation throughout the life cycle wherein repeatable processes can be formulated that maintain significant retained equity in activities performed. To achieve full benefit in the transition to greater automation, we have observed the importance of first establishing effective processes then selecting the appropriate product(s) that satisfy established requirements.

Testmasters consultants can assist you in this critical endeavor to ensure that your organization has established an environment conducive to effectively implementing automated products. We can also assist you in selecting the appropriate "product(s)" for your environment.

When properly integrated with structured methodology, automated tools provide effective solutions to specific repeatable processes. In the absence of structure, benefits are significantly compromised and may lead to unsatisfactory results.

The seven strategic steps illustrated below, enable an organization to build the most applicable “fit” essential to meeting established objectives within the organization’s environment.

Step 1: Assess Environment

Assessing the environment consists of 5 primary categories of determination that provide the strategic information critical to formulating an effective automation plan. These factors are:

1. Personnel

2. Time-line Dependencies

3. Methods and Procedures

4. Application Characteristics

5. Financial Resources

Completion of the environmental assessment provides a comprehensive view of the current environment surfacing all objectives, constraints, timings, priorities, organization, and methods. Unique requirements, that must be fulfilled, or technical hurdles, that must be overcome by automation, are identified.

Step 2: Identify Gaps

The completed environmental assessment surfaces aspects that might not integrate well with automation. The Gap analysis presents a strategic outlook from which priorities can be established and a formal framework can be created.

Step 3: Establish Framework

This phase of the integration effort results in a formal plan identifying priorities, requirements and strategies to essential to achieving desired objectives. Strategies include all aspects associated with the transition to automation. Work effort includes filling gaps vital to the successful implementation of automation. This may include creating test standards and guidelines; constructing the test architecture; and training test staff in the core competencies crucial to effective testing; and the transition to automation.

Step 4: Select Tools and Prototype

From the test decomposition process, strategic objectives and application anomalies formulate tool categories and associated requirements and objectives. Typically, specific factors are identified and included into an evaluation matrix to assist in selecting candidate tools. A requirement might be for the test tool to operate in both Client/Server and Mainframe environments. A corresponding strategy might be to enable the deployment of the same test data in both environments. This might entail the need to prepare a “data-driven” rather than script-driven processes, enabling the same data to be re-used on different platforms.

During this phase, tools are evaluated and selected for prototyping. Specific objectives of each prototype effort are identified and the factors used to determine success are stipulated. The prototype and pilot process enable the organization to obtain practical experience with the derived solution.

Step 5: Make Changes / Apply Lessons Learned From Prototype

The completion of the pilot or prototyping effort provides an opportunity to tailor the integration effort to make it more suitable for broad release. Changes are made and final transition plans are updated to more expansive application of the structured testing effort.

Step 6: Integrate Tools and Processes

Upon completion of the final transition plans, the new tools and processes are integrated into the organization. Work effort during this phase includes process and tool training. Training and mentoring support can be provided during this period to assist in overcoming resistance to change and in deriving expeditious solutions to impediments that surface during widespread adoption of the revised practices.

Step 7: Monitor and Measure Results

To maintain cost effective processes, one needs to continually monitor the value from the efforts being employed. Monitoring and measuring results provide a critical view of the risk mitigation efforts. These regular evaluations often lead to additional changes improving the quality and cost-effectiveness of the program.

The comprehensive nature of this seven-step program incorporates our collective experiences in introducing test automation to an organization. We feel strongly that following this strategic approach will significantly improve your opportunities for success. We welcome the opportunity to provide you additional information on this approach.

View another Service: Test Practices Assessment, Life Cycle QA Initiatives