In this article I will be discussing the steps that should be taken when building a test automation strategy.

1. Select the cases for test automation. Every project cannot be automated. Mostly its suitable for long term projects and projects which has large amount of regression test cases. We can also select test which needs large input and which needs less manual intervention.
2. Hire automation test professionals - To do test automation we need people who possess the skills in the scripting language and test automation tool. The team needs to be trained identifying any skill gaps that is there to pick up and run test automation in a project.
3. Select the right test automation tool - Selenium is not the answer to all the test automation needs. Some tools defer with the platform which we are going to automate. Web services and mobile platform test automation should be addressed with different tools. Tool depends on client budget, skills in the team, functionality needed in the test suite, support needed from the tool, etc
4. Update the test cases - Test suite which are we going to update should be precise. All the outdates test should be removed, new ones should be added, steps needed should be modified when necessary. This makes the life of the test automation professional easy,
5. Setting up the test automation environment - The machines needed for test automation to execute, continuous integration application and hardware, Necessary hardware and software for the test environments should be purchased and setup in order for the test automation strategy to execute.
6. Creating a test automation framework - A test automation framework is a must for any test automation project. It is a platform which uses best practices and standards. So, a test automation framework integrates components such as reusability, reporting, data driven, extendibility and portability.
7. Writing the test scripts - Once the framework is done, test scripts should be developed according to the coding standards and test automation scripting standards that should be in place. Test automation scripts should be atomic and there should not be any dependencies among scenarios. Also keep in mind to prioritize scenarios according to the test requirements should be done at this phase.
8. Reporting the test automation results - Test results should be captured and shared among stakeholder with ability to visualize easily and find where errors are occurring and why.
9. Script maintenance and deployment - The test automation scripts should be easily maintained and modified when changing interfaces and functionality. Deployment guides should be done and review the ROI we gain and finally the scripts should be implemented in CI solutions.

These are the generic steps that a test automation project should adapt in order to put the ship safely into the sea.