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Are you planning to become a tester? If yes, then you are following the right path. There is no doubt in saying that this job role has bright career opportunities due to its importance in the software development industry. However, in recent years, automation testing has overshadowed manual testing in the ever-changing world of software development. It is fast and uses modern automation techniques.
So, if you are looking to build your career in Quality Assurance, it is essential to master automation testing skills. In this blog, we will discuss the necessity of automation testing, how it changed the industry, and the top 10 skills you must learn today.
Why Automation Testing is Crucial?
Automation Testing is the primary factor that helps businesses to get success in the software development industry. It allows organizations to expand their reach by saving time and manual efforts, which also saves the cost of the company.
As a student, it is necessary to understand the importance of automation testing because only then would you be able to master the required skills. By automating repetitive tasks, testers can focus on functionality of the application.
This process leads to high-quality software and quick delivery, which is mandatory in this competitive IT sector. This testing type is also crucial because it adopts agile methodologies and utilizes the manual testing process with automation testing tools. This modern approach allows you to fix bugs quickly, ensure feedback loops, and integrate with CI/CD pipelines.
This section discussed the necessity of automated testing, but how does it benefit the software industry? Let’s look at the next section to find out.
How Automation Testing Benefited the Software Industry?
There are several ways by which automated testing brought a revolution in the software industry, and some of them are mentioned below:
- Large-scale projects that experience frequent modifications benefit from automated testing since it expedites the testing procedure and ensures delivery within the allotted period.
- Agile testing necessitates extensive human participation in manual testing, which makes the entire process tiresome. Automation testing assists in addressing this issue by automating repetitive operations.
- Test scripts are often prepared once for repeated tasks, so they may be reused each time the same scenario needs to be run.
- The scripts can be changed to meet new features as they become available and then reused.
- The entire testing process becomes quicker through automated testing. Automation testing can save time and money by cutting the length of time it takes to conduct repeated tests from days to hours.
- The range and depth of tests that are performed through automation improve the quality of the software and expand the test coverage of the application modules.
- For any frequent software update, the automated test scripts can be utilized again and again.
- The DevOps engineers use automation testing to speed up software delivery to the market.
10 Key Automation Testing Skills You Must Learn
To become an expert automation tester, you must learn these ten required skills that can enhance your career in a subtle way to reach the peak of success.
01. Analytical Thinking Skills
Analytical thinking skills are required for recognizing patterns, understanding complicated systems, and identifying problems in software applications. You must examine requirements and create practical test cases that cover a variety of situations and edge cases.
This expertise enables you to estimate where errors are likely to occur and develop tactics for properly testing those areas. By thinking critically, you can enhance software quality, ensuring it fulfills user expectations and functions consistently under a variety of scenarios.
02. Knowledge of Programming Language
To be an effective automation tester, you must have a thorough knowledge of programming languages. Most automated test tools make use of programming languages such as Java, Python, Perl, and Vb script. You must be knowledgeable in these programming languages.
The automation tester’s thought process should include identifying and covering all possible modules that require automation. To design test scripts, you must be proficient in coding. Self-learning helps to learn various programming languages, which will help you to develop automated test scripts.
03. Functional Testing Skills
Validating the software against its functional requirements is a critical component of automation testing skills. As a tester, you will be responsible for making sure every feature functions as intended, taking into account all user interactions and workflows because it serves as the basis for developing automated test cases that verify particular functionalities.
This expertise is fundamental. Gaining proficiency in functional testing allows you to guarantee that the program operates as intended across a range of circumstances, enhancing the application’s overall performance and dependability.
04. Expertise in Test Scripts Development
There are many different types of automation testing frameworks on the market. While some frameworks require programming experience in order to produce automated test scripts, other frameworks write test scripts in standard English without requiring you to comprehend backend logic or coding.
To optimize the advantages of automated testing, you must possess the ability to write compelling, reusable test scripts. Tools like Cucumber allow test scripts to be written in simple English, but tools like Selenium WebDriver require programming experience. When designing test cases, automation testers should be well-versed in the selected automation tool and its valuable features.
05. Understanding of Automation Testing Tools
You must have a deep knowledge of the available automated testing requirements in the market that will eventually assist in simplifying the entire testing procedure. Having a solid understanding of tools like TestComplete, QTP, and Selenium is essential.
Every tool offers unique features and functionalities that might enhance the testing procedure. By incorporating these technologies into the development process, you should be skilled at setting them up and using them efficiently.
As an automation tester, you can increase speed and coverage by automating a variety of processes, such as functional testing, sanity testing, and regression testing, by being knowledgeable about automation technologies.
Read More:
Top 10 Software Quality Assurance Tools For The Professionals
06. Knowledge about the Business Requirements
You have to understand the business requirements related to the application that is being tested in its whole form. Understanding the functionality of the program, user expectations, and corporate objectives are all part of this.
Automation testers may better detect risks, create accurate test cases, and make sure the application satisfies quality standards by having a deep understanding of the business objectives.
To fully understand the business requirements, you will also need to actively connect with stakeholders, make relevant inquiries, and look for clarifications.
07. Familiarity with DevOps, Agile, and Continuous Delivery
Continuous delivery, DevOps techniques, and agile processes are closely related to automation testing. Therefore, it is mandatory for you to understand how automation testing fits within these frameworks.
You should learn to link automated tests with continuous integration platforms like Jenkins or GitLab, automate test cases to accommodate frequent changes in requirements and participate in the entire DevOps process.
You can enhance your testing efforts with development and delivery processes, leading to faster and more efficient software releases, by becoming familiar with agile, DevOps, and continuous delivery principles.
Read More:
An Ultimate Guide to Know Everything About DevOps!
08. Good Communication and Collaboration Skills
You must have strong communication and collaboration skills. You are required to interact with developers, business analysts, and other testing team members. Effective communication is essential for understanding requirements, and ensuring everyone is on the same page.
It also aids in reporting test results, sharing insights, and discussing the overall progress of testing efforts. Collaboration skills are valuable for working effectively in a team, contributing to agile ceremonies, and actively participating in discussions related to test strategy, test planning, and defect resolution.
09. Ability to Mitigate and Assess the Risk
You need to be skilled in identifying risks associated with the testing process. You must assess the impact of risks on testing operations and develop plans to mitigate them. Changes in the testing environment, business logic, or interfaces can all introduce risks to automation testing.
It’s essential for you to closely monitor the testing process, report any issues or anomalies, and work with stakeholders to find practical solutions. By identifying and addressing risks, you can ensure smooth and efficient test execution, reducing the likelihood of delays or failures during the testing process.
10. Time Management Skills
Effective time management is necessary to meet deadlines, balance several projects, and guarantee comprehensive testing. Automation testers have to be good time managers, prioritize their work, and make sure the testing is finished on schedule.
The team responsible for automation testing must decide on the order of tasks and schedule their use of the available time. The tasks can be broken up into smaller time slots by the team.
Determining the main tasks and when to do them will be simpler if the work is broken down into smaller components. By managing your time well, you may generate better work and use the additional time to enhance the automated testing procedure.
Final Word
Lastly, it is better to conclude that these automation testing skills will not only make you a Quality Assurance expert but will also help you to make a successful career in the software testing industry.
As a student, if you are stepping foot in the testing world, it is essential to learn about automation testing, having expertise in using the latest automated tools and gaining in-depth information about software testing methodologies.
You must start learning these skills from today onwards, and then you will be ready to face the challenges of modern software development. We hope you liked our insights about this topic, and in case you have any queries, feel free to reach us.
