In our implementation to model-based test approach, we also found that the most challenging part for people to overcome is not the tool itself, but shift in the way of thinking, similar to what you experienced - from script writing to models. Those that were able to realize…
The beauty of ARD is that it allows you to do both. If you want to do direct automation, you can put automated scripts directly behind building blocks, as you build a model (for instance, we tried Selenium scripts). On the other hand, if you want to start with manual tests…