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If you want to expand your team’s capacity and boost productivity, it's time to move beyond manual testing and embrace automated software testing. Automated testing is vital in modern software development, especially in a continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipeline, as it enables fast, reliable software releases while reducing the strain on your team.
But how do you implement automated testing effectively? Let’s break down the key steps to ensure a smooth transition to this new approach.
To scale your product, drive innovation, and free up your team’s time and resources, automation—particularly in testing—is essential. As software and teams grow, manual testing quickly becomes unmanageable, leading to longer release cycles, increased defect rates, and costly post-release bug fixes that harm customer satisfaction.
The more your product evolves, the clearer it becomes that manual testing cannot keep pace with the volume of code changes and growing complexity.
Implementing automated testing is then a crucial strategy for digitization, scaling, and integrating into a continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipeline alongside DevOps practices.
Automation testing brings significant benefits:
Implementing best DevOps practices in the development lifecycle is a key determinant of software delivery excellence and the capacity for continuous delivery. And automated testing is one of the very essentials. By incorporating practices like Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD), automated testing, Infrastructure as Code (IaC), and observability, teams can streamline processes, reduce manual errors, and enhance collaboration across development and operations. Our survey of 75 global CTOs and technology leaders showed that 78% of teams report a high level of DevOps integration (rated 4 or 5), underscoring a strong commitment to automation and monitoring practices that improve release speed, reliability, and consistency. However, some teams continue to face challenges in fully optimizing these processes, often due to incomplete automation or reliance on manual workflows. As DevOps integration matures, the development lifecycle becomes more agile and responsive, enabling teams to deliver value continuously and meet organizational goals.
While the benefits of automated testing are clear, it's important to be aware of the potential challenges during implementation—and how to effectively address them. First, let’s look at the most common challenges you may face and how to overcome them.
The first challenge is the high upfront cost. Implementing automation testing requires an initial investment in tools, infrastructure, and resources, which can be hard to justify. This includes purchasing tool licenses, setting up test environments, and training staff to develop proficiency in automation tools and techniques.
Another challenge is shifting your team’s mindset. It’s not just about learning new tools but adapting to a significant change. Team members may be comfortable with familiar methods and tools, so they’ll need both training and a clear understanding of why automation is crucial. This will help them embrace the change and align with the broader goals of increased efficiency and quality.
Sometimes, basic tool training isn't enough; creating a robust automation testing strategy requires more advanced skills and capabilities within your team. Currently, a huge number of companies struggle to find, hire, and retain quality testing and automation support engineers. This shortage can significantly impact your ability to implement automated testing effectively.
The testing framework is critical to the success of automated software testing. With many automation frameworks available, choosing one that doesn't align with your business needs and goals can lead to inconsistent, broken scripts and ultimately undermine your entire automated testing strategy. That’s why it’s essential to carefully select the right framework to ensure long-term success.
The next challenge is more technical—integrating legacy systems with automated testing frameworks. Legacy systems may not seamlessly align with modern automation tools, which could require investing in new systems or finding solutions to bridge the gap. This also demands a separate strategy and may generate additional costs, effort, and the need for specialized skills to ensure smooth integration.
How can you overcome these challenges and ensure a smooth implementation of automated software testing? Let’s explore an overview of our best practices.
Given the high initial costs, one effective way to minimize expenses is to concentrate on the most critical test cases and gradually expand your testing scope. Adopting a modular testing strategy can also be beneficial. Additionally, consider using open-source models that offer flexible financial options and plans to reduce overall investment while still achieving your automation goals.
To effectively automate testing, it's essential to prioritize which test cases to implement first—and this consideration extends beyond financial factors. The most efficient initial choices are typically those tests that are run frequently and require large volumes of data to execute. By focusing on these cases first, you can achieve the highest efficiency and impact right from the start. This approach also frees up resources, allowing you to gradually automate less urgent tests that are easier to handle manually.
Many open-source tools can facilitate testing, test automation, and automation in general. However, how do you determine which one is the best fit for your needs? Here are some important questions to consider before selecting an automation framework:
By answering these questions, you can better identify which frameworks will work best for your team and project requirements.
For effective analysis and to optimize testing processes, it’s crucial to track records of executed tests. Maintaining detailed documentation—including errors, logs, screenshots, and videos of running tests—facilitates the identification and resolution of issues. This thorough documentation helps you understand factors such as:
By gathering this information, you'll be better equipped to respond quickly and effectively to issues, ultimately improving your automated testing process.
To learn more about best practices in implementing automated software testing, feel free to check our article: QA in Software Development – Implementation & Best Practices.
So how to start with the plan for implementing automated software testing that will include all best practices and help to overcome challenges? Let’s take a look at this proposal:
The first step in successful testing automation is to establish clear objectives. Focus on the most critical test cases—those that are run most frequently—ensuring your efforts target the areas that will deliver the greatest impact.
The next step is to evaluate your team’s skills concerning the identified goals. Are they equipped to implement testing automation? If there are gaps in their expertise, it's important to address them, whether through additional training or hiring new professionals—keeping in mind that recruitment may take time.
After researching different automation frameworks, select the ones that best align with your objectives, specific needs, and the resources available to your team.
For smooth automation and quicker ROI, prioritize test cases by breaking them into smaller, manageable units rather than large, complex tests. Start with the most critical ones to deliver immediate impact, then gradually expand to cover less urgent cases.
Once the testing strategy is in place, set up the testing environment and integrate automation testing at every stage of the software development process. Ensure this is incorporated within the CI/CD pipeline to enable continuous testing and smooth releases.
As training your team is essential for successful automated testing, organize sessions that focus on tool usage and best practices. This not only equips your team with the necessary skills but also helps foster a mindset shift, encouraging them to embrace the benefits of automation.
Maintaining detailed records of executed tests is crucial for identifying patterns and improving future testing. Track key metrics such as failure reasons, test coverage, bottlenecks, and other critical indicators to ensure continuous improvement and optimization of your testing automation process.
By following this implementation plan, your organization can effectively integrate automated software testing, enhancing efficiency and quality throughout the development process.
We hope this article has provided valuable insights into automated software testing and helped you outline a clear strategy for implementation.
For more in-depth information, explore our latest report, "From Vision to Code: A Guide to Aligning Business Strategy with Software Development Goals."
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Authors
Software development enthusiast with 7 years of professional experience in the tech industry. Experienced in outsourcing market analysis, with a special focus on nearshoring. In the meantime, our expert in explaining tech, business, and digital topics in an accessible way. Writer and translator after hours.
With over 12 years of professional experience in the tech industry. Technology passionate, geek, and the co-founder of Brainhub. Combines his tech expertise with business knowledge.
Software development enthusiast with 7 years of professional experience in the tech industry. Experienced in outsourcing market analysis, with a special focus on nearshoring. In the meantime, our expert in explaining tech, business, and digital topics in an accessible way. Writer and translator after hours.
With over 12 years of professional experience in the tech industry. Technology passionate, geek, and the co-founder of Brainhub. Combines his tech expertise with business knowledge.
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