Successful projects require automated tools for both developers and testers. While much has been written about development tools, Scott Sehlhorst writes this about testing tools:
Automated testing has become a critical component of software product success. Processes like continuous integration require test automation to be effective. Unit testing requires automated testing to be effective as a rapid-development tool. Whitebox testing is almost always done with automation. More and more blackbox testing is being done with automation. A team without a good approach to automated testing is working at a severe disadvantage, and is arguably doomed to extinction.
Read more about test automation in Test Smarter, Not Harder.