How long have you been in test automation? What was it like when you first encountered it? How did test automation start and where is it headed in the future? Involved in automating tests from her very first job, Dorothy Graham has seen many changes in testing and test automation.

In this presentation, Dot takes a look back at software test automation over her 50+ years in this industry She shares what she has learned about test automation with lessons for today, and a look towards the future.

This Keynote was part of our AutomationSTAR Virtual Day 2024. EuroSTAR Huddle shares talks and articles from our community. Check out our library of online talks from test experts and come together with the community in-person at the annual EuroSTAR Software Testing Conference. The EuroSTAR Conference has been running since 1993 and is the largest testing event in Europe, welcoming 1000+ software testers and QA professionals every year.

Dorothy Graham

Independent, UK

Dorothy Graham has been in software testing for over 50 years, and is co-author of 5 books ('Software Inspection', 'Software Test Automation', 'Foundations of Software Testing', 'Experiences of Test Automation', and 'A Journey Through Test Automation Patterns'). She is also co-author of the Test Automation Patterns wiki (https://TestAutomationPatterns.org). She was Programme Chair for the first EuroSTAR Conference in 1993, and also in 2009. She founded Grove Consultants in 1989 which provides consultancy and training in software testing. She has been a popular speaker at international testing conferences and events over the years, and continued to speak after retiring from Grove in 2008. Dot helped to start testing qualifications (in the UK) and helped develop the first ISTQB Foundation Syllabus. She holds the European Excellence Award in Software Testing, and the first ISTQB Excellence Award in Software Testing. Her main hobby is choral singing. She has attended every EuroSTAR Conference, except for the 2019 and 2023 events.