Real End-to-End Test Automation: Far More Than Just Quality Checks. Part A: Team Productivity Boost *

Automating the app through the UI with test scripts can empower the entire team and significantly enhance productivity.

I have written the “Benefits of Real E2E Test Automation and Continuous Testing series” tailored to different roles including Executives, Managers, Business Analysts, Developers, Testers and Customers.

In this new series, I will focus on real results (not fake ones such as made-up velocity points) powered by real E2E (UI) Test Automation.

• Part A: Team Productivity Boost

• Part B: Release Early, Release Often (coming soon)

• Part C: Dare to Explore Simpler & Better Options (coming soon)

• Part D: Make Fixing Defects Mucher Easier, Quicker and Cheaper; Plus, Prevent Stuff-ups. (planned)

• Part E: Team Morale Boost (planned)

• Part F: Professionalism (planned)

• Part G: The value continues to shine in the software maintaining phase (planned)

A common misconception is that "Test Automation is just finding defects (a different approach from manual testing)," often relegating it to a secondary concern in software development. While good testing is undoubtedly valuable, real end-to-end (E2E) test automation offers far greater benefits beyond simply finding defects faster and cheaper.

Despite its obvious advantages, E2E test automation is frequently overlooked, even in many so-called "Agile" projects—making them, in reality, fake Agile. Many software companies have attempted E2E (UI) Test Automation and failed, often reverting back to manual testing (expensive, lengthy and error-prone).

The primary reason for this neglect is a lack of capability within companies, though senior engineers would use other excuses to hide the fact. I hope this new series will inspire company executives, startup founders, and software engineers to take E2E (UI) test automation seriously and recognize the significant benefits it brings.

The top reason a software company CEO should make E2E test automation training the next priority starting tomorrow: It will significantly boost the entire team's productivity.

This is not an exaggeration. The app under development (AUD) is software that all team members use daily, regardless of their roles.

• Developers navigate the AUD to build new features, fix defects, and verify changes after refactoring.

• Testers (both manual and automated) primarily use it to validate functionality from an end-user perspective.

• Business Analysts review implemented features (collaborating with developers) and collaborate with customers on new or changing requirements—all within the AUD.

Imagine a typical business process that takes two minutes to complete manually (assuming no mistakes). With automation, that time can be reduced to just 24 seconds—a 5x productivity boost, (with greater reliability). And since all team members perform these tasks many times a day, the impact on overall efficiency boost is substantial.

The foundation for the great benefits below is Real End-to-End (UI) Test Automation as regression testing.