#148 - Behavior-Driven Development (BDD) Essentials - Jan Molak & John Ferguson Smart

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Sep 11, 2023

Jan Molak and John Smart, co-authors of 'BDD in Action: Second Edition', discuss behavior-driven development (BDD) and its essentials. They introduce BDD, its benefits, and the Gherkin language. They share advice on applying BDD, managing BDD specifications, and techniques like feature mapping and example mapping. They also discuss the screenplay pattern and the Serenity projects. They provide insights on testing layers to apply BDD and anti-patterns to avoid.

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ANECDOTE

John's Insurance Automation Anecdote

John Smart shared a 20-year-old anecdote about replicating insurance rules from Excel into Java with executable specifications.
Using real test examples from the business led to successful collaboration and validation of complex rules.

ANECDOTE

Jan's Journey From Video Games to BDD

Jan Molak described starting in video games, focusing on automating testing despite skepticism.
He connected dots about BDD helping clarify requirements and collaboration across industries.

INSIGHT

BDD Solves Communication Gaps

BDD addresses communication gaps in software delivery by involving all roles early in requirements discussions.
Traditional siloed approaches cause delays and defects due to lost information along handoffs.

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“BDD is about helping you collaborate with the different parties involved in software delivery to understand what’s actually required of your system, why you need to deliver it, and then find the best possible way to automate your requirements."

John Smart and Jan Molak are the co-authors of “BDD in Action: Second Edition”. In this episode, we discussed in-depth behavior-driven development (BDD) and its essentials. Jan and John first began by introducing what BDD is, the benefits of using BDD, and the Gherkin language with its given-when-then syntax. They gave advice on how to introduce and apply BDD, especially for legacy software, and how to manage the BDD specifications effectively. Jan and John then shared several BDD techniques, such as feature mapping, example mapping, impact mapping; and went deep into the screenplay pattern and the Serenity projects they both create to implement screenplay pattern. Towards the end, Jan and John shared their insights on which testing layers we should apply BDD and some anti-patterns we should avoid.

Listen out for:

Career Journey - [00:04:49]
Challenges Before BDD - [00:11:30]
Behavior Driven Development (BDD) - [00:15:24]
Benefits of BDD - [00:22:33]
Gherkin - [00:27:39]
Introducing BDD - [00:32:24]
BDD for Legacy Software - [00:38:41]
Managing BDD Specifications - [00:43:15]
Screenplay Pattern - [00:47:09]
Serenity Project - [00:58:42]
Other BDD Techniques - [01:11:33]
Testing Layers to Apply BDD - [01:14:13]
BDD Anti-Patterns - [01:18:28]
4 Tech Lead Wisdom - [01:23:01]

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Jan Molak’s Bio
Jan Molak is a consulting software engineer and trainer who specialises in enhancing team collaboration and optimising software development processes for global organisations. Jan is the author of the Serenity/JS acceptance testing framework, a contributor to the Screenplay Pattern, and a co-author of a renowned book “BDD in Action, Second Edition”.

John Ferguson Smart’s Bio
John Ferguson Smart is a specialist in BDD, automated testing, and software lifecycle development optimization. He is the founder of the Serenity Dojo, an online training platform for testers who want to become world-class Agile Test Automation Engineers, and the creator of the Serenity BDD test automation framework.

Follow Jan:

LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/janmolak
X – @JanMolak

Follow John:

LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/john-ferguson-smart
X – @wakaleo
Serenity Dojo – serenity-dojo.com

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