Whenever enhancements are added or other changes are made to the PeopleSoft system, FI$Cal must run tests to make sure that core functionality has been preserved. A small team in our Business Operation and Solutions Division works hard to make sure things continue running smoothly.
They do it through regression testing, which they are now automating with a health check suite across an increasing number of modules. The effort began in March 2019, when the team started setting up the initial scripts. They have been adding modules ever since.
The team creates new scripts and updates the existing script inventory for new milestones, enhancements or other new functionality migrating to PeopleSoft. This happens whenever a change request is put into an environment. The team has created a test suite for each module, complete with scripts for different scenarios.
The idea is to test system functions, especially those deemed critical. If a test fails, the automation team does research, sometimes calling in subject matter experts (SMEs) to solve the issue. This is a perpetual process because FI$Cal is a dynamic system under constant change. That’s why automating the regressive testing became imperative.
FI$Cal uses robotic process automation to make sure the values required for this testing are filled in automatically and accurately. This effort provides expedited results to ensure that planned changes do not impact current system functionality and can be deployed without impacts to departments. Overnight tests are run weekly to validate that any code/configuration changes migrated to production did not break existing PeopleSoft functionality.
The test suite has been running for several months and has just finished Phase 1, which completes the creation of high-priority test scripts. During Phase 2, the team plans to meet with SMEs again to make sure the scenarios remain valid and to add new ones.