Albertsons automates POS software testing
One of the largest grocers in the U.S. is streamlining the testing of POS and peripheral systems with artificial intelligence (AI).
During a review of its technology infrastructure, Albertsons Cos. determined it wanted to move from relying on manual testing of its POS and peripheral systems to an automated solution that would improve the quality of its software. Albertsons saw automated software testing as being critical to avoiding POS issues such as not taking a card payment, which can directly impact revenue and frustrate customers.
The company decided to implement AI-driven test automation technology from Eggplant its partner IntelliQA. Initially, Albertsons focused on automating main bank testing, as manual testing of the complex system was a slow and onerous task.
Albertsons needed a test automation solution that didn't require installation on physical devices, as that presented security concerns, and Eggplant software can test any technology in any part of the enterprise without being installed. The intelligent automation technology tests thousands of scenarios quickly and continuously hunts for defects.
As a result, Albertsons rapidly accelerated the delivery and quality of its POS software. The company also freed up employees to focus on evaluation and exploratory testing, rather than repetitive manual test execution. Time needed to execute tests dropped from almost two weeks to a couple of days.
Albertsons next automated testing of payment hardware on fuel pumps, and is currently looking to automate the self-checkout process. The automation of almost 500 retail POS regression test cases has allowed Albertsons to reduce the need to add manual testers for new initiatives.
“Our customers benefit from an improved experience, while our colleagues, without technology frustrations, can focus on the customer,” said Mike Friedel, senior director retail customer solutions at Albertsons. “Additionally, our implementation of test automation provided significant relief during the recent challenges with COVID-19."
"We truly have benefited from the robotics in our testing,” said Martha Crosley, QA test manager, Albertsons. “The faster execution has enabled us to have back-to-back POS code drops or parallel testing for different purposes, POS for regression testing, pin pad update testing, and intake pre-release testing."
Albertsons Companies Inc. operates 2,252 stores, 1,725 pharmacies, 398 fuel centers, 22 dedicated distribution centers, and 20 manufacturing facilities across 35 states.