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Quality Experience: How I Transitioned from Manual to Automated Testing
In 2018, I sat in a room with colleagues interviewing the next QA hire. I’d been with the current company for a year and felt established with the team. My title was QA Analyst. My focus was manual testing. I was happy and doing well! The QA the company was hiring for would focus on automated testing and I felt encouraged by being included in the hiring process.
We sat across someone who did not have any automation experience. While they seemed to me like a lovely person, they had spent seven years as a Manual QA Analyst. When the interview was over, one of the hiring managers summed up the interview by saying, “If they haven’t learned automation in that amount of time, they never will.”
I took that personally. I was in my second year as a QA Analyst. I realized that while I felt “established”, those around me were looking for someone driven to learn. Within the next two years, my career changed dramatically. Here’s what I learned.
Find a Team that Believes in You
It matters who you work with. I dared to believe that I could learn what appeared impossible to learn - automation. When searching for my next job, I knew my focus would be solely on growth and I expressed this in interviews. It took a long time, but I found a team that believed in each other and in the work they created. They put me in charge of building the QA process from the ground up. Thinking back, I still find that kind of wild. I’d never been a QA Lead. Had never written an automation script. But, I told them what I’d done up to that point and what I’d be doing, with or without them. They chose to include me and I’m forever grateful.
Figure out what you want in an Engineering Team. Work for those who are willing to encourage you just as much as they will challenge you. It’s worth the effort.
Gather Your Resources
Whether you find your dream team or not, you can start by gathering your resources together. When I worked as a Manual QA, I felt like I didn’t know where to start or what to do when it came to Automation. My first attempt at Selenium went nowhere and honestly, it soured my view of it entirely. So, here’s the first truth:
You don’t have to know Selenium to succeed as a QA Automation engineer
I know, I know, I’ve bumped against someone’s sacred cow. But, the beautiful thing about life and careers is that you get to decide who you work for and what tools you use. Not every software company is using Selenium. Many times, if you’re willing to learn one framework, it’s assumed you’re willing to pick up another. There isn’t a right or wrong answer here. So, deep breath. It’s okay if your road looks different from mine. The important thing is that you start walking.
First things first: Frameworks
Yes, there’s Selenium. And, there’s Cypress. Also, Playwright. From my view, those are probably the top three (though feel free to add what you are using in the comments). Here’s where you can learn them.
Test Automation University offers many paths. While I have my favorites, we’ll stick with the top three mentioned above:
Cypress Path:
Start your journey on Cypress with their recently refreshed videos. This includes a section for writing tests with Typescript and testing for Accessibility!
Playwright Path:
Includes an introductory course as well as an Advanced course!
While there isn’t a specific path for Selenium, there are many courses included in the full course list that will prove helpful.
Find Your People
The best thing you can do for your career is to talk to people who are doing what you want to do. Attend networking events, reach out on LinkedIn, and read blog posts! If you look for them, many voices in the community are writing about Automation and we get to benefit from their experience!
Here are a few of my favorite people:
Kristin Jackvony - The Thinking Tester. She also wrote “The Complete Software Tester” which is an excellent resource for any QA at any skill level.
Filip Hric - He’s created courses for TAU. His blog is extensive and his writing style is easy to understand. A great source if you want to learn Cypress.
Angie Jones - Offering courses, talks, and workshops, there is plenty to learn from Angie. She is the first person that got me excited about my job! You cannot go wrong with any content she creates.
TAU, Cypress, and Playwright all have a Slack or Discord channel you can join!
Here are the links:
Pick Your Tools
If you can. Many times, you can’t always choose the types of tools you get to work with. But, given the chance, pay attention to how the tools you are working with make you feel.
For instance, Test Case Management. Ugh. Did that send a shiver down your spine? It did mine for many years. Not all QA teams use them, but up until I was in charge of picking one, I had to work with test case management systems that were clunky, dull, and repetitive. Once I had the chance, I did a lot of research on what I would use. Enter Qase. I love putting together test cases using Qase. Their clone feature is one of my favorite options. But, to understand its value, create an account for free and start following the docs. Learn to love writing test cases - if that’s even possible.
Identify Your Gaps and Fill Them
Interviewing is a great way to learn where you are behind in your knowledge. This may sound harsh but what helps me is viewing interviews as a learning opportunity. When I first started interviewing, I didn’t know what the SDLC was! In interviews, I’ve learned that after Cypress 10, there were different best practices when it came to writing tests. And, that I’d been writing them incorrectly. When I identified a gap, I wrote it down and researched it after the interview. All feedback is feedback. No, you may not get the job, but you learned what you didn’t know, and sometimes that is the skill you need for the job you’re looking for! Always be open to learning something new. The team that’s right for you will recognize that and want to work with you.
Be Patient with Yourself
While I don’t feel like a beginner anymore, every day can seem like there is still so much to learn. Thankfully, I’ve learned that this is only a moment in time. I have the resources I need and the people whom I can learn from. Try not to stress over what you know or don’t know As Steven Pressfield says, “Put your ass where your heart wants to be.”
You’ll get there.
And, I’ll be cheering you on the whole way.
Till next time…
What did I miss? What resources, tools, and frameworks do you use? What are the ingredients that helped you transition from a manual QA to automation? I would love to hear your story.
Written with “Into the Astronomer’s Dream: Immersive Experience” by Teravibe playing in the background.
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