Test automation streamlines daily work, cuts costs, and speeds up releases. For large teams, it’s non-negotiable. When multiple teams are involved, turning automation into part of the routine can be more work than it first appears. A few precautions now prevent headaches later and build confidence across the entire process.
7 most common mistakes when implementing test automation
Here are the top 7 mistakes that hold back companies trying to scale their test automation, and practical solutions for each one.
1. Believing automation alone guarantees quality
Many teams think simply running automated tests is enough. In reality, only 15% of companies actually improve quality through automation, according to the “State of Testing Report 2023”. That’s because the focus is usually just on execution, with little attention to planning, critical scenario coverage, and business objectives.
Automation needs to be a deliberate strategy. Before jumping in to write scripts, align on what really matters to the company, centralize your efforts, and keep everything visible to everyone. There’s no point in each team automating their slice of the system without looking at the big picture. TestBooster.ai solves this by centralizing and connecting all QA initiatives.
2. Documentation and communication
Another classic issue: tests so cryptic that only the original author understands them. This quickly leads to rework, struggles with maintenance, and reliance on specific people.
A survey from the World Quality Report 2023-24 shows that 61% of companies cite knowledge loss and communication difficulties as direct causes of project delays.
For large teams, invest in automation that boosts collaboration. Using natural language and guided flows helps everyone from QA to product managers understand what’s being tested.
3. Automation bottlenecked by a handful of specialists
When automation depends only on a few “gurus”, bottlenecks appear. Teams stall, productivity drops, and quality suffers if those experts aren’t available.
Accessible tools make a huge difference here. If anyone on the team can create, adapt, or run tests, nobody is left waiting in line for requests.
With TestBooster.ai, just describe what needs testing and the AI handles the rest. This democratization speeds up daily work and removes collaboration barriers.
4. Disconnected tools and teams
Adopting several different tools, like Selenium, Cypress, and Playwright, tends to split efforts and information. Each team has its own reports and its own standards. The result: duplicated work, conflicting metrics, scattered information, and low efficiency.
Data from the “Accelerate State of DevOps 2022” report shows that organizations integrating tools and teams see up to three times greater improvements in lead time and failure detection. Centralized management and unifying automation tools is the answer.
TestBooster.ai plugs into your entire testing infrastructure: it integrates legacy systems, displays everything in a single dashboard, and simplifies management regardless of the testing framework.
5. Fragile tests and never-ending maintenance
Large teams handle frequent changes. If every update breaks dozens of automated tests, automation itself becomes a burden instead of a help. Teams start avoiding updates out of fear of breaking even more.
Companies often cite maintenance as the biggest challenge after rolling out automation. This points to fragile, overly rigid test suites with little adaptability.
Adaptive tests are vital at scale. TestBooster.ai offers goal-driven automation, so your tests can evolve along with the system, with no need to rebuild everything each sprint.
6. Overlooking API and Integration Testing
Many critical failures come through APIs and system integrations. Some teams focus only on the UI and skip these routines; bugs end up reaching users unnoticed. Mature teams prioritize API testing, since over 70% of critical incidents are caused by integrations that UI automation can’t see.
The advice here is simple: don’t leave APIs out of your automation pipeline. TestBooster.ai makes API test creation and execution easy, even with natural language, bringing more safety and clarity to your entire cycle.
7. Lack of Visibility
Finally, the absence of centralized dashboards and overall quality metrics leaves managers and teams in the dark about project status. Decisions become guesswork, risks increase, failures repeat, and trust in the process erodes.
Tools offering a unified view make all the difference, not just for technical teams, but also for leaders demanding results.
With TestBooster.ai’s dashboards, everyone, from developers to executives, gets a complete, real-time picture: where quality is strong and where quick fixes are needed.
In short, avoiding these 7 mistakes means less rework, less risk, and more reliable deliveries. For large teams, automation only achieves its promise when it’s accessible, connected, and grows alongside the business.
Ready to take the next step? Try TestBooster.ai.
