Measuring The Success Of Test Automation - An Insight

Evaluating the success of test automation has always been a challenge and an important issue too. Objectives of test automation are always vital, as they ultimately determine the direction a team of developers is headed in. It also determines the end result of all the funding as well as the assessment of any particular project and last but not the least, the probability of success or failure in meeting the intended mission objectives. One of the mainstays of measurement of success is the AROI or Automation Return on Investment, which is at times misconstrued as the benefits or advantages of automation. Let us discuss how to evaluate the success of test automation.

Previously, a crude process of evaluation was followed. It included measurement of the percentage of test cases that were automated. However, this at times turned out to have a fair bit of loopholes, and was soon discarded and a new method was adopted.

Before we get into that, let us at first know why we need to do test automation? The main objective of test automation measurement is to improve the test efficiency so as to save time along with effort, along with a substantial amount of costs at the end of the day.

Now what are the most appropriate ways of measuring the success of automatic evaluation of software? Rather than measuring the percentage of evaluation cases to be automated, the essential metrics of automatic evaluation should put more emphasis on the savings that can be acquired from successful execution of those automatic evaluation cases in terms of time as well as efforts.

The entire process is though easier said than done. Actually, correctly calculating the time along with effort saved through execution of automatic evaluation is an extremely complicated process. For accurate calculation, it is imperative to know the amount of time as well as the efforts it takes for execution of each and every manual test case. Besides, once those figures are available, it becomes necessary to map the data to the actual scripts of the automatic evaluations that are being executed, followed by a holistic calculation of all the parameters of the evaluations.

In order to reach a concrete conclusion through this entire process, what is needed is a sizable amount of time, effort as well as a seamless collaboration with the team that executes manual tests.

However, one might not forget that there is always the presence of a certain amount of tests that are not yielding the desired results in spite of being automated. Hence, in order to bring this percentage into consideration it is imperative to change things into Value Metrics of Test Automation.

This new process of evaluation has been pretty effective, albeit the strenuous effort that is needed to collate all the required information. However, the test management tool used needs to be appropriate and should be such that it will readily support capturing the relevant information, aggregating the same and returning the desired metrics alongside the trend. For this, MS Excel is a wonderful tool that comes in handy.

However, just as a footnote perhaps it will not be inappropriate to mention here that in order to get maximum ROI for automatic evaluation, the following parameters need to be maintained:

The scope of the Automation will have to be determined in details before getting off with the project.

The appropriate automation tool needs to be selected on the basis of the fact whether it is appropriate for the assessment. Do not select tools on the basis of its popularity.

The framework needs to be appropriate. The standards for scripting will have to be maintained in a proper way. The scripts, comments as well as the code indentation to need to be uniform, and finally, exceptions should be handled adequately.

Selection of the right automatic evaluation tool, assessment process as well as a testing team is extremely important factors when it comes to a successful evaluation. Moreover, when it comes to successfully evaluate the achievement of these tests, maintenance of these parameters properly also makes the evaluation easier as well as quicker.

You can hire testers from top certified automation testing company in India who can help you accomplish testing within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide outsource automated testing services. If you would like to hire automation testers from us or would just like to speak to one of our expert software testers, please reach out to us at Mindfire Solutions.

Five Ways to Make Test Automation Fail

Test automation or what is also known as automation is basically the process of getting a software program tested by another computer or rather another program that can be referred to as the automation tool. Automation testing is a preferred strategy for most entrepreneurs and this is certainly because of the several benefits offered by the process. Successful execution of the automated tests leads to better quality, higher productivity and most importantly, much lower costs. However, the process often fails while the objectives are also not accomplished in a majority of situations. Now, the failure of the tests owes to certain reasons that also include the wrong perceptions of the QA managers.

Signs of Failure

Prior to delving deeper into the five prominent causes behind the failure of these particular tests, let us understand the signs of the failure of the same. One of the main intentions behind carrying out the tests is to satisfy the stakeholders and take them into confidence. When the stakeholders are not happy with the results and the entrepreneurs prefer manual testing over automation, one can assume that the process has failed. A demoralized team of professionals also paves the way for the failure of the tests and is therefore, extremely undesirable.

A Few Wrong Perceptions

Automation testing fails as a result of certain wrong perceptions. People often assume that the process can be a solution to most problems including that of shortage of time or scarcity of resources. This is a completely wrong idea just as the concept of automated testing as a substitute for testing that is not so improved is also inaccurate.

Quite similarly, while many consider the procedure to be effective in reducing costs, it is not actually so. Neither is the concept of automated testing all about regression nor is it meant to eliminate the chaos in testing. One must have his concepts or ideas about test automation in order to engage in the right use of the procedure.

Five Causes behind the Failure of Test Automation

1. Choosing the Apparently Most Powerful Tools: When it comes to automated testing, even the most powerful tools are not the best ones. In fact, the choice of the tools should be based on factors like budget, the technology behind the application, the skills of the engineer and so on. Once chosen, you must make sure that the tool meets your specific expectations. Going after the powerful tool without considering the necessary factors would lead to a failure of the procedure.

2. Not Realizing the Significance of a Standard or Framework: The implementation of the testing process necessitates a certain standard or framework. Many organizations fail to realize that and hence, do not spend the required time on building a framework. The professionals work in an aimless manner and this too, exercises a negative effect on the same.

3. Considering It to Be a Part Time Project: Automation testing is often mistaken for a part time project that can be operated parallely with any other development projects. Actually, testing itself is an independent project while the main projects are partially dependent on it.

4. Attempting at Automating 100% Regressions: Trying to automate 100% regressions even with the best team and the tools is a difficult proposition. Basically, the process is a long- term one in which the resources have to be analyzed thoroughly to achieve the desired goals.

5. Considering that the Process is Easy: Like any other process, the procedure of automation testing can be quite complicated and it can actually necessitate a lot of skills as well as professional expertise. Assuming that it is rather easy and straightforward leads to an obvious failure of the same.

Test automation can be of immense significance provided that one gets rid of the wrong notions and engages in a proper implementation of the process. And that’s when you would need to hire automation testers and manual testers who are certified and benchmarked by the industry.

We provide software automation testing services. If you would like to get your application tested by our certified software testers, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.

Manual Testers are from Mars, Automation Engineers are from Venus

The basic difference between manual testing and automated testing is that the former requires a person, whereas the latter requires a button. Many reports have also highlighted how an enterprise can avail several benefits by automating its software testing process. But many enterprises still deploy manual testers because they consider testing automation both complex and expensive. Also, many companies still believe that it is the price of manual testing is lower than software development cost. However, each company wants to choose the best testing options to impress users by delivering a flawless product. So each company must understand the key differences between manual testing and automated testing to take the right decision.

Key Points of Distinction between Manual and Automation Testing

1. Required Time: Many companies find manual testing to be both tedious and time-consuming. As human resources are deployed to execute the test cases, it takes more time to complete the testing process. On the other hand, the automation testing can be done using a set of tools and frameworks. As no human effort is required, these tools can customize the testing process, and execute test cases at a much faster pace.

2. Investment in Human Resources: When a business opts for manual testing, it becomes essential to hire skilled and experienced software testers. A company may also have to deploy several software testing professionals to increase the pace of the testing process. So manual testing required businesses to invest in human resources. But automation testing does not require enterprises to invest in human resource. A company can simply procure the testing tools and framework to run test scripts and identify bugs.

3. Reliability of Test Results: The frequent changes in user demand require each software application to be tested under a number of circumstances. Further, the testing must be done with 100% precision by emulating exact user behavior. But the reliability of test results can be impacted by several factors including human errors. As manual testing requires test scripts to be executed by human resources, the chances of human errors increase. On the other hand, automation testing can deliver precise results each time by performing the same operation under different conditions.

4. Programmability: The software testing plan must aim to identify all bugs along with fetching hidden information. So sophisticated testing needs to be done using programming to find and fetch the hidden information. The manual testing is not effective in getting the information due to its non-programmable nature. But the automation testing allows testers to write sophisticated programs to identify bugs and flaws along with bringing the hidden information out.

5. Option to Incorporate Changes: The software developers often experiment with new technologies, databases and third-party applications to improve use experience. Further, they include the latest version of a software application to avail additional features and functionality. So there are always chances that a software development project needs to be revamped completely before its release. As the manual upgrade tests take more time, most business opt for automation testing. The automated testing tools further allow professionals to test the project several times to identify the bugs and hidden information.

6. Required Maintenance: Unlike manual testing methods, automation testing requires specific maintenances. But it allows developers to complete the testing at a rapid pace. With more and more enterprises opting for test-based software development, it has become essential to save the time and effort of developers. When a software developer is not required to spend more time in testing, it will be easier for him to explore innovative ways to optimize the look, feel, performance and scalability of the application. So the automation testing can get more ROI despite requiring additional maintenance.

It is always important for an enterprise to decide the right type of testing by keeping in mind the nature and requirements of the project. A company can further consider implementing a customized software testing strategy that includes the best aspects of manual as well as automation testing. And that’s when you would need to hire automation testers and manual testers who are certified and benchmarked by the industry.

We provide software testing services and are among the top software testing companies India. If you would like to talk to one of our certified software testers, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.