I am looking to build out a testing team and ultimately leverage automated testing, but I truly don't know how or where to begin this journey. If you have experience in this space, where did you begin?


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Solutions Architect in Software, 501 - 1,000 employees
A solid starting point is to begin with Manual QA, where you'll create comprehensive test plans and test cases. This approach will provide you with a clear understanding of what can and should be automated. It will also help you assess the potential benefits and cost reduction associated with automation. In the early stages of software development, when frequent pivots are common, relying solely on automated tests might become burdensome due to the need for constant updates. Therefore, striking the right balance between manual and automated testing is crucial for an effective testing strategy. As the product stabilizes and requirements become more predictable, you can gradually introduce automated testing to streamline the process and improve overall efficiency. Remember that each testing approach has its strengths, and a thoughtful combination of both manual and automated testing will yield the best results for your testing team.
Strategic Banking IT advisor in Banking, 10,001+ employees
We've been through the same path a few years ago.

We first found out that we were very weak with testing (either manual or automated) and that was leading to more and more defect in production.

We looked at 2 strategies:
A) Increase code-coverage testing and make it mandatory.   You cannot promote / deploy your code if you don't reach 80% of code-coverage with your tests.   We have a tool that measure this.  [we are using Jenkins]
B) Automate regression tests  [we are using HP-ALM/QC]

As we had around 20 teams (+/ 1,000 developers back then), we put in place a new team that would:
A) define best practices
B) make sure the right tools are available
C) become a center of excellence (testing champions)
D) measure results

The goal was not to keep that team forever.  After 3 years, all the best practices have been absorbed by the 20+ teams.  They now have incorporated the automated testing practices in their daily tasks. 

Hope it helps.

Steve
Sr. Director of Engineering in Software, 51 - 200 employees
The manual process of creating QA artifacts and setting up a robust and long-term QA strategy is first thing needed to establish a QA practice from scratch. Once Manual QA is in place and members have gone through few rounds of manual regression and product maturity is there as well, automation can be started. The choice of how much automation can be developed will be areas that need more effort or undergo frequent changes etc. 

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VP of IT in Finance (non-banking), 10,001+ employees
Yes, multiple times. The ovecame it by using customized templates and API integrations.
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