Implementation

As part of our daily QA workflow, testers had to manually assign and manage stash items (test objects) through an internal web platform. This process presented several pain points:

• The web page had slow loading times, severely impacting productivity.

• Access required an active VPN connection, adding extra steps and dependencies.

• Searching for specific items within the platform was tedious and time-consuming.

• Each object had to be assigned individually, forcing testers to repeat the same actions multiple times a day.

• Reassigning items to teammates required navigating through the same slow interface, multiplying the inefficiency.

  What should have been a quick task became a constant productivity drain for the entire QA team.

The Solution

I designed and developed an automation tool using Playwright that replicates and accelerates the most common interactions with the stash platform — without needing to open the browser at all. The tool was built around the actual day-to-day needs of the QA team, covering the most frequently used actions:

• Assign individual objects to oneself.

• Assign entire sets of objects in a single command.

• Reassign objects to teammates instantly.

• Remove or release objects from assignment.

• Bulk operations to handle multiple items simultaneously.

The Challenge

• Built the tool using Playwright for reliable browser automation.

• Designed a headless workflow, eliminating the need to manually open and navigate the platform.

• Mapped out the most repetitive and time-consuming actions through team feedback to ensure the tool addressed real user needs.

• Maintained VPN compatibility to comply with internal security protocols.

• Created a simple interface/command structure so any team member could use it without technical knowledge of automation.

Results & Impact

• Reduced object assignment time from 2 minutes to just 15 seconds — an 87% time reduction.

• Eliminated repetitive manual tasks, freeing testers to focus on actual testing work.

• Boosted overall QA team productivity, especially during high-volume testing days.

• Improved team collaboration by making it faster and easier to share or reassign objects.

• Adopted as a standard daily tool by the entire QA team.

Key Takeaway

This project reinforced the value of listening to the team's pain points and applying targeted automation to eliminate friction in daily workflows. Even small optimizations — when applied to repetitive tasks performed dozens of times a day — can result in massive time savings and a noticeable boost in team morale and efficiency.