How to Make Test Automation Effective in an Agile Environment
Allocate enough timings., Developing quality test scripts keeping in mind regression testing needs., Get the right automation tool., Keep a bird’s eye on development environment., Keep your tests small and lean.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Allocate enough timings.
Since in agile development there is a continuous release of various iterations, the team usually misses out on the quality.
Even worse, when there are several sprints which require fixing, it becomes really tough for the team to devote time in developing, fixing and testing each iteration.
It is necessary for the team to allocate enough time for testing.
It is advisable to start test automation parallel to development so that there are no lags.
This will help the team in becoming more productive and respond to the results quickly and avoid last minute rushes.
Moreover, it will also help testers to devote time in exploratory test which requires manual efforts. -
Step 2: Developing quality test scripts keeping in mind regression testing needs.
Teams should develop quality test scripts keeping in mind the regression testing concept.
Developing quality test scripts here means, ensuring that the test scripts meet the below mentioned criteria: correctness, maintainability, versioning, integrity, portability, performance.
The objective behind this is to run testing especially regression testing smoothly and correctly without any intervention from the testers.
If the test scripts are developed in the regression testing concept, the team would be able to complete the testing without much changes in the scripts and can also avail the benefits of performance, speed and accuracy. , Testing team should also understand the fact that if it’s not the right automation tool, nothing’s going to be right.
A lot of effort should be involved while evaluating and purchasing a test automation tool.
One should always refer to the criteria or requirements before selecting a test automation.
Below are some of the features/criteria that an ideal test automation tool should have/meet The test automation tool you choose should be OS friendly.
Larger the number of operating systems it supports, better it becomes for teams to perform testing Test automation tool should also be in line with your budget and should incorporate features in terms of its pricing and licensing The tool should have easy to understand architecture.
Meaning, the UI, navigation and functionality should be user-friendly so that even a layman can operate it.
There are certain testing tools with codeless architecture which means, testers need not write codes and can test the applications in minutes The automation tool you choose should be able to give quick results and reporting abilities so that testers can quickly respond to the requirements of the agile testing environment , The teams should understand and check their development environment which consists of simple virtual machines to cloud environments that deals with external services and database.
Any bug or problem in the application may be the result of network problems, configurations, unavailability of services, backend data, etc.
Without good understanding or monitoring of the actual environment, teams would be juggling with the root causes and would waste their time instead of achieving the results.
Hence it is imperative to get complete knowledge about the development environment and their aspects before implementing test automation so that teams can divert their attention in improving the quality and not in finding the causes of defects. , Keeping tests cases small and lean really helps avoid the unnecessary test data that do not require testing or add no value to the actual result.
It also helps in dealing with complex scenarios since the test cases are small.
Moreover, teams do not require analyzing large suite of test cases which contain different codes, scenarios, configurations etc.
Smaller and incremental test cases also reduces the load on the agile development environment and helps in evaluating the cost vs.
ROI figure for every lot. -
Step 3: Get the right automation tool.
-
Step 4: Keep a bird’s eye on development environment.
-
Step 5: Keep your tests small and lean.
Detailed Guide
Since in agile development there is a continuous release of various iterations, the team usually misses out on the quality.
Even worse, when there are several sprints which require fixing, it becomes really tough for the team to devote time in developing, fixing and testing each iteration.
It is necessary for the team to allocate enough time for testing.
It is advisable to start test automation parallel to development so that there are no lags.
This will help the team in becoming more productive and respond to the results quickly and avoid last minute rushes.
Moreover, it will also help testers to devote time in exploratory test which requires manual efforts.
Teams should develop quality test scripts keeping in mind the regression testing concept.
Developing quality test scripts here means, ensuring that the test scripts meet the below mentioned criteria: correctness, maintainability, versioning, integrity, portability, performance.
The objective behind this is to run testing especially regression testing smoothly and correctly without any intervention from the testers.
If the test scripts are developed in the regression testing concept, the team would be able to complete the testing without much changes in the scripts and can also avail the benefits of performance, speed and accuracy. , Testing team should also understand the fact that if it’s not the right automation tool, nothing’s going to be right.
A lot of effort should be involved while evaluating and purchasing a test automation tool.
One should always refer to the criteria or requirements before selecting a test automation.
Below are some of the features/criteria that an ideal test automation tool should have/meet The test automation tool you choose should be OS friendly.
Larger the number of operating systems it supports, better it becomes for teams to perform testing Test automation tool should also be in line with your budget and should incorporate features in terms of its pricing and licensing The tool should have easy to understand architecture.
Meaning, the UI, navigation and functionality should be user-friendly so that even a layman can operate it.
There are certain testing tools with codeless architecture which means, testers need not write codes and can test the applications in minutes The automation tool you choose should be able to give quick results and reporting abilities so that testers can quickly respond to the requirements of the agile testing environment , The teams should understand and check their development environment which consists of simple virtual machines to cloud environments that deals with external services and database.
Any bug or problem in the application may be the result of network problems, configurations, unavailability of services, backend data, etc.
Without good understanding or monitoring of the actual environment, teams would be juggling with the root causes and would waste their time instead of achieving the results.
Hence it is imperative to get complete knowledge about the development environment and their aspects before implementing test automation so that teams can divert their attention in improving the quality and not in finding the causes of defects. , Keeping tests cases small and lean really helps avoid the unnecessary test data that do not require testing or add no value to the actual result.
It also helps in dealing with complex scenarios since the test cases are small.
Moreover, teams do not require analyzing large suite of test cases which contain different codes, scenarios, configurations etc.
Smaller and incremental test cases also reduces the load on the agile development environment and helps in evaluating the cost vs.
ROI figure for every lot.
About the Author
Doris Richardson
Writer and educator with a focus on practical lifestyle knowledge.
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