Automated Testing in Agile Environments

Recently I had an opportunity to present at an "Evening Talk" hosted by Hitachi Consulting Hyderabad under the banner of STeP-IN forum and boy was it fun !!

I am attaching a link to the presentation I used and hope it is informative as I am sure that it is hilarious !! (Must watch the ppt in presentation mode and NOT in slide mode ...)

Automated Testing in Agile Environment

“Medals” do not make “Heroes” … “Passion” does ..

This is the second time I am writing about a movie that has profoundly impacted me by the string message that it conveys. (See my previous blog Always stand by your wingman) .

I recently watched an animation movie - "Wreck it Ralph". Some of must be thinking what is a grown up man seeing an animation movie that too one about arcade games :) .Well in my defense I am really a die-hard fan of this genre and the reviews about the movie were very encouraging !!.

This movie is the story of an arcade game villain “Ralph” who is tired of being the bad guy.... He is hungry for love, affection, respect and would not want other game characters not to faint when they see him …. Atleast for once !!

During the course of movie Ralph decides that all he needs to steal a “Gold Medal” from another arcade game so that he earns the respect of all the game characters in “Wreck it Ralph” (Whom believe that “Bad Guys” do not get a “Gold Medal” and hence no love !!). This where his journey starts which is full of fun, laughter and most importantly his self-realization that one does not need a "Medal" to be a hero....

This made me think of the many time in my life when I have felt sad, frustrated, lost in despair for not being appreciated or rewarded enough. I believe that all of us go through such challenging phases in our life and what I learnt from this movie is that sometimes one has to cherish the smaller things in life such as the day to day support of family and fellow colleagues. They may not always say that we did a great job but there are always subtle hints that things are good like the occasional dessert at home or the pat on shoulder at office.

I do not believe that we should step out of the competition and just be content with what we have BUT what I do believe is that one should put his best efforts on the task at hand and not let a medal, promotion be the sole driving force for his day to day efforts. At the end of day if you go to bed with a smile on your face because you know that someone counted on you today and you did perform is priceless !!

This movie also had another great message that each of has a crucial role in the greater scheme of things in life . My role may seem less significant or glamorous than someone else on a given day but believe me when I say that "The minute you give up or even slag down the Titanic sinks !!" . The value of self-motivation is often understated and as a result sometimes we forget that deep down inside there is something more than awards, promotions or medals that drives us and this is our “Passion” for what we do.

Remember that each of us is a “Hero” every single day we turn up for work and give our best to our jobs.

I would leave you with one of the most debatable yet inspirational quotes I have come across ..

Success - the ability to move from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm.  - Winston Churchill

Keeping up with the moving times …

Recently I was having a discussion with my wife over how fast things are changing around us.

We often find it difficult to keep up with the advancements in the field of technology or with the rapidly changing environment around us. Be it configuring your PDA as a hotspot or hoping to see a movie without pre-booking tickets a week in advance. I remember the fun times we used to have just driving to the Skyline or Anand theatre and getting tickets to see a movie. Gone are those times - most movie theatres in Hyderabad have been replaced by multiplex cinema halls requiring us to pre-book way in advance to reserve a seat. Come to think of it, there are so many instances where one can see a fast moving product, trend, or way of life being obsolete now:

1.       Audio Cassette à Audio CDs à USB pen drives hosting 1,000 songs

2.       CRT television sets à LCD TVs à LED TVs à 3D LED TVs

3.       STD/ISD à Landline phone à Mobile phone

4.       Tailor made clothes à Readymade clothes

5.       Cricket at nearby park à Cricket on PS3

6.       Zoo à Animal Planet

One can identify a million more examples. Some of the changes above are for the good, while some of them are not.

What we need to realize is that we indeed are the “Golden Generation” as we have been fortunate enough to have a rich cultural upbringing under the guidance of our parents. I often feel that the next generation (our kids) will never get to see a real lion unless they can fund a trip to Africa! The chances of our future generations spending time climbing trees or playing outdoors seem pretty slim too. Maybe we can act as bridge between the two generation islands (our parents à our kids) as both the parties have an entirely different view of the world and it is us who have seen and have been a part of the transformation so far.

Each of us has a great responsibility to ensure that we pass on the essence of life and cultural values to the next generation. Respect for elders, love for plants and animals, and spending time with family were less about laws for us but more of a gradual learning as we saw the same traits in our parents.

Change is inevitable but what we choose to bring with us and pass on to the next generation will always be our choice.

I cannot resist quoting the immortal dialogue from Spiderman…

“With Great Power comes Great Responsibility” ….. Hope we are all up for it!!

Always Stand by Your Wingman

Always Stand by Your Wingman

“Trust is the confidence among team members that their peers’ intentions are good, and that there is no reason to be protective or careful around the group. Team-mates are vulnerable with one another; they are confident that their respective vulnerabilities will not be used against them.”

- Patrick Lencioni

I recently watched a wonderful movie called Barfi! This movie had all the components that Indian mainstream movies often miss. It certainly qualifies to be categorized under the coveted genre of a commercial documentary (or docudrama). The movie tells the story of a deaf and dumb man who loves “to smile in the face of problems.”

One scene from the movie that depicted the true essence of trust among friends touched me. The scene shows Murphy (read “Barfi”) cutting a wooden electric pole and standing in front of it along with a friend as it falls a few inches away from his feet and crushes a glass bottle kept at the estimated point of impact. This was his way to measure the trust and the strength of the bond of friendship that he shares with a number of characters in the movie.

I was dumbstruck to see the ease with which the director has portrayed the real essence of friendship and the spirit of belief between the protagonists. 

“Always stand by your Wingman” — this was what my project manager told me on the first day of my job seven years ago and to this day it actively rings in my mind and remains one of my most significant lessons of life.

We often fail to acknowledge our team members and family members alike who have stood by us in the thick and thin of life. I do not recall a single day of my professional or personal life where I have not relied on one of my colleagues or family members to play a crucial role that would eventually decide the outcome of the task at hand.

I wonder if we’d ever find the time to “thank” these individuals for their faith in our abilities. 

So, the next time you are applauded for an accomplishment, remember to share your laurels with your pals, team members, or family members who encouraged and stood by you all the way.

Evolve or be Replaced

Evolve or be Replaced

Recently I visited my hometown to attend my sister's engagement function. Like any other outstation trip, I started packing my bags along with my favourite gadgets that I always carry with me. One of those was my camcorder. I could capture beautiful memories and probably capture the occasion on video.

As I started digging into my heap of electronic treasures and found my camcorder, I thought that a test run would be a good idea. I booted up the camcorder and shot a one-minute video of the interiors my house. Of course, the next logical step was to plug it into the television and analyse the video output ... I know that you cannot stop smiling right now and would have done the same at some point of time.

To my surprise, I found that although the video was pretty decent I could still see some pixilation on my LCD TV.  This wasn’t going to work. I needed to coax my wife into letting me buy a camcorder with better specifications. I began building a case by listing the pros and cons of this decision.  Then it dawned on me that my camera can take videos too! In fact, I remembered that it supports a video recording of 1280 * 720 pixels (in non-technical geek language that translates to "video quality on my camera should be superior to conventional cameras!"). As I tested the sample video using my camera, I realized that it had indeed outperformed my digital camcorder.

Then I realized: "Regardless of how good your product is and how niche your market solution is, there is always a competitor waiting to knock you down." In this case the digital camera — which is a relatively older product — has evolved to a point where it eliminated the need to own a digital camcorder; at least for the amateur user like me. In today's world with rapidly emerging technologies and swiftly evolving markets and customer groups, we always need to be on our toes and ensure that we do not rest on past laurels. We may be selling a product that has captured a niche space in the marketplace, but, before we know it, we could be blindsided by a superior product/service offering.

Staying ahead of the market isn’t easy. Our industry leaders ensure that we’re always operating one step ahead and this has served as a critical piece of our organization’s success. The idea of thinking ahead and being proactive should also apply to our own careers.  

By anticipating change and thinking differently, we can all become a force to reckon with.

I would leave you with two of my favorite quotes about competitive advantage and you would be surprised to see how such simple words carry such a strong message.

“Research your idea. See if there's a demand. A lot of people have great ideas, but they don't know if there's a need for it. You also have to research your competition.” - Magic Johnson, NBA All Star

"In a garage somewhere, an entrepreneur is forging a bullet with your company's name on it." - Gary Hamel, US academic, business writer, and consultant

Conflict - - The key to Success!!

I know the title itself provokes an obvious question "How drunk is this guy"

I would have agreed with the same until I saw this phenomenal talk by Margaret Heffernan on TED

As it turns out in most of our daily lives whether at work or at home we as Human beings try to resort to the company of people whom think like us, and have common thought patterns and inadvertently would act like us when put under the same circumstances with the same set of input factors to work upon.....

Why do we do this?? I Why do we not have friends that hate the music we love?? Why do we avoid the uncle who does not think highly of our Career choice and it's outcome??

The answer is rather straight and perhaps a bit demeaning " Because we want to avoid Conflict"

All of us alike would not like to get into conversations or situations when we are NOT sure that we would emerge victorious....

Is this a healthy attitude??
Does it promote the best solutions and the following success??

Let us try and answer this with some more questions...

Did the early man have conflict upon a whether I wheel should be round or square??

Did scientists have conflict over whether light is matter or wave??

Did Galileo get into a conflict about Earth's shape??

The answer to the above questions is a resounding "YES"

What this hints at or probably shouts out loud is that every time we try and avoid a conflict of thought, judgements, decision....... We are depriving ourselves of the chance to take the best decision at a given point of time....

Conclusion by any means is NOT to promote fights at home and work or to create a negative image of fellow human beings in each others minds..... BUT to promote disagreement and conflict when fueled by the right rationale thoughts and to ensure that we as a part of our families and our organization believe in asking the 'Difficult Questions'

As only when you ask such questions is when you have a chance to validate an opinion / pending decision with tangible proof

So do not fear Conflict as it may actually help you to ask the question of that is on everyone's mind but is often ignored due to the fear of not conforming with a group....

The Test Automation Chronicles

“What is meant by that ??” . This is the first question that came to my mind when I heard the term “Test Automation” about 5 years back.



Second question was actually an alarming one and remains one of the most significant questions to date.



“Will Test Automation replace Manual testers ??”



The answer is a resounding “NO”



The Testing world has always had and will continue to have great value for Manual testers as they are the eyes, ears and decisions making hands of Business Analysts and Product Owners. Testing is an inseparable part of the Waterfall or V Model of software development and the results of ignoring the importance of Software testing has seldom being catastrophic for major projects. No-one really knows the real cost of failed software projects, but in the US alone it is estimated to be upwards of $75 billion a year in re-work costs and abandoned systems.



Let’s try and understand how does Test Automation fit in the puzzle of Testing domain.



Allow me to give you an interesting analogy for Test Automation from one of my favorite Comic Characters “Batman”.



A long time ago Bruce Wayne in his initial days as “Batman” stumbled upon a unique problem – Arkham Asylum was unable to keep track of medication details all the in-house criminals. (No “The Joker” still has no cure !!). Although doctors at Arkham strived hard to religiously feed in the details of the medication and their dosage taken by their patients at Arkham in to the database, there was no way to track these details at a facility level on a month to month basis.



Then one day the “Bat Light” was lit and Batman was pulled into this issue, database management not being his area of expertise, batman had to consult his trusted colleague Lucius Fox for this matter. Lucius was able to create a piece of Automated code which did the job of going through all the Medication profiles of each criminal housed at Arkham and generated a monthly report for the same to be submitted to the Medical in-charge. This solution had tremendous impact (Although it was never featured in any of the Batman comics !!) and now doctors were able to monitor individual patient medical profiles and trends on a month on month basis. Thanks to Batman and Lucius all the Arkham inmates are not as insane as the Joker !!



Test automation is the use of software to control the execution of tests, the comparison of actual outcomes to predicted outcomes, the setting up of test preconditions, and other test control and test reporting functions. Commonly, test automation involves automating a manual process already in place that uses a formalized testing process.

Application of Test Automation tools and techniques across the board in EDSC would have wide ranging benefits including but not limited to the following:




Test Automation Benefit

Here's How


Save time : Generally increases the speed of the testing process and shortens the testing lifecycle

Scripts can be run in the night, effectively giving the user a day shift and night shift

Scripts can be run on multiple machines-multiple platforms simultaneously

Scripts run faster than a manual tester


Increase quality: Through repeatability, reliability and comprehensiveness

Provides reusability and repeatability that can be run each time the application is changed

Accuracy in testing is increased by reducing possibility of human error and making less dependent on individual capabilities

Facilitates creation of tests that check all aspects of the application leading to an overall increase in quality


Utilize manpower more effectively: Apply skills and time where they are needed most

Manual testing can be used for new feature validation while automation can be used for regression

Most functional and regression testing can execute unattended

Focus efforts where you didn’t have time for before, such as performance and security


Increase coverage: Ability to test how the software reacts under repeated execution of the same operations

Perform the same tests on multiple Configurations, more configurations, more benefit here

Regression suites can cover every feature in your application which may be difficult to accomplish manually depending on your application’s size

Different versions can reuse the same automation code with minor modifications


Programmable: Program sophisticated logic

Some web applications use hidden information like session id, and account information which are impossible or difficult to manually verify

Some applications have no UI, and are best suited or can only be tested with automation rather than manual testing

User can program logic to respond differently to different environments and situations




One overriding emphasis of both TDD and acceptance testing is that the tests should be automated. Scrum testing team is excited about Test Automation playing a pivotal role in streamlining day to day testing tasks and save valuable testing hours spent in the area of Regression testing. Test automation fits in perfectly into the Agile development model and would help improve the code quality for the EDSC Dev team as the automated tests are repeatable and accurate and most importantly would not require a testing resource to test the same flow manually every time a code change is made on the given product module.

As an increasing number of enterprises embrace agile software delivery approaches they realize a new set of challenges. The realities of the enterprise - geographic separation of teams, cost reductions, diminishing timelines, and limited resources - require that organizations take a practical approach to agile software delivery. Modern automated testing solutions play a vital role in supporting this evolution by enabling agile teams to implement test strategies that are flexible, repeatable, and accurate. In the end, businesses can reduce the risk of releasing applications of unknown quality or reliability with agile test automation.