Are Testers Losing Their Grip Over Testing Due to Automation?

Testers on the Verge of Transitioning to Automation Test Developers:

In today’s digital era, automation has become the foundation for business growth and expansion. It has completely transformed the way organizations carry out their operations.

Over the past decade, advancements in technology have been rapidly increasing, leading us into a new era of automation. This technological shift has had a noticeable impact on various industries, including the software industry itself. 

An Overview on the Software Industry Landscape

The software industry comprises of companies and organizations that develop software to simplify tasks in various sectors such as healthcare, insurance, and retail.

These software companies create software with the aim of solving business problems for organizations or accelerating their operations.

The Power of Automation in the Software Industry

Automation is rapidly transforming the software industry compared to other sectors. Technological advancements such as DevOps, Analytics, and Cloud Computing have already gained significant momentum, resulting in job losses.

According to a global survey conducted by Cognizant, 25 to 40% of the participants have already automated their workflows. Companies are embracing automation because it allows them to achieve substantial cost savings. Leading IT companies that have automated their workflows have successfully reduced costs related to productivity, infrastructure, and resources.

According to Hfs Research, the IT industry is projected to lose 1.4 million jobs in countries like the Philippines, the United Kingdom, and the United States by 2023.

The Impact of Automation on Overlooked Software Testing

Software testing is a vital process undertaken by software companies to ensure that the software they develop meets the required standards. Software testing involves a series of steps that are followed to identify defects in software, where defects refer to anything that deviates from the software’s intended purpose.

Software testing plays a crucial role in the software industry by enabling the delivery of high-quality software to clients across various sectors.

Here are some key reasons why software testing is essential:

• Software testing is mandatory to ensure the quality of the software that will be deployed to support business operations.
• It is necessary to determine whether the application meets customer expectations and reliability requirements.
• Testing helps prevent failures before the software is launched, as any failure can negatively impact a company’s reputation.

In the past, software testing was often disregarded and considered a thankless job. However, the perception has gradually changed, and software testing is now recognized as important in the industry. Companies have started allocating budgets for software testing and have established dedicated teams of testers.

With the emergence of Agile methodologies, software testing has become repetitive, and regression testing has become a necessity.

Manual regression testing is time-consuming and resource-intensive, prompting companies to seek alternatives. Automation has emerged as a solution, leading to the rise of automation testing and the development of automation testing tools. Consequently, this has affected the roles of manual testers, opening up opportunities for automation test engineers who are essentially developers.

The Buzz around “Faster Time to Market” and the Push for Automation Testing

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Certain skills possessed by testers, such as cognitive and creative abilities, which contribute to their value as testers, are now overlooked.

The pursuit of achieving a “Faster Time to Market” has made automation testing essential. However, by losing the actual skills of testers, valuable real-world quality assurance feedback may be lost as well. Automation testing involves executing test scripts developed by automation test engineers, and these scripts tend to focus more on positive test scenarios since automation engineers think like developers. Ensuring overall coverage of negative test cases presents a challenge.

The Potential Loss of Testers’ Control over Testing due to Automation

Automation test engineers rely on automation testing tools and their technical skills to create test scripts. However, they often lack in-depth domain knowledge and testing skills, which are critical elements for delivering high-quality software.

Real testers, who are genuinely passionate about testing and possess testing expertise, utilize their domain knowledge to identify all possible test scenarios that address crucial business requirements. They have extensive experience in creating effective test cases to cover all identified test scenarios.

Testers apply their knowledge of test design methods to ensure maximum functional test coverage for the tested application.

What distinguishes a real tester is their understanding of customer expectations and behaviors, in addition to application testing.

For example, a product may be deployed for different clients, each with their own set of expectations. A real tester would put themselves in the client’s shoes and conduct testing to meet those expectations. Customer satisfaction is always their ultimate goal.

With the rise of automation and the potential job loss faced by manual testers, many testers now find themselves in a dilemma. They are attempting to become automation test engineers by learning tools like Selenium or UFP or other automation testing tools prevalent in the market. However, they may end up becoming automation testers who focus more on coding rather than actual testing.

Recommended read => Getting started with Manual Testing: A Real Project

Automation Testing without Scripting and Technical Knowledge

Instead of pushing testers to become automation test engineers, an alternate approach can empower them to perform automation testing. Script-less functional test automation tools can assist testers in conducting automation testing. These tools also benefit organizations that recognize the value of testers’ domain knowledge and testing skills in delivering high-quality software.

Ensuring functional accuracy in an application is only possible when it is tested by testers who possess not only knowledge of the business domain but also a deep understanding of the application’s functionality. This expertise is what they have developed over years of working as testers.

Automation testing tools that enable script-less automation testing provide testers with the ability to focus on their core skill set.

About the Author: Pavan has 17 years of experience working with both start-ups and enterprises. He brings extensive technology experience and expertise in building multiple software products. Pavan specializes in strategic management, IT product development, software quality assurance, business operations, and cloud infrastructure management.

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