When Frameworks fail

Frameworks are like ice cream flavours. In general, there is a base set, but it branches out to a lot more. Whether it is automation testing, dynamic or static testing, there are different sets of guidelines for others to follow to get the job done.

With that in mind, one has to understand that there isn’t a magic framework that will make everyone’s lives easy. Another thing that has to be understood is that it may not last forever. Things change, and it is up to the team to recognize it and make changes.

Now I am not saying a complete revamp is needed. Now that could happen. What I am talking about is being more fluid and adaptive. Think about my first comment, the flavours of ice cream. In the beginning, there were only a few frameworks out there that were suggested for organizations to use to improve quality. They others started to add to it or remove it. It was an early version of freeware. Everyone had a hand in making improvements.

One of the things that I have seen is when Senior management gets wind of frameworks or something terrible has happened where they want to start over again with process changes. To continue down this path is a fool’s errand. The amount of time to start over and to be productive is more time consuming than to review and make small changes.

Now there could be technology changes within the organization that may full well require a revamp of frameworks. If that is the case, remember that a framework is not built around a tool. That is a recipe for disaster. Tools should fit a process, not the other way around.

Things must be kept up to date, and frameworks need to be revisited regularly to ensure that expectations are still being met.