The document discusses an approach called specifications-driven development (SDD) for testing software. It outlines the benefits of SDD, including keeping documentation up-to-date and allowing distributed teams to collaborate. Key aspects of SDD involve writing testable requirements as examples, automating tests, and continuously validating and refining specifications. The presenters provide recommendations for implementing SDD on new and existing projects.

1. December 2011
Specifications For Enterprise Testing
Presenters
Sathyan Sethumadhavan & Shalabh
Varma

2. Agenda
Where do we spend more time
A new approach for collaboration
Implement Specifications
Gauge Progress
Q&A
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3. Do you experience any of this
Defects Leakage Missing Requirements
Test and
Requirements
documents becomes
stale
Frequent changes Breaks existing
functionalities
Long Regression
Cycles
Less confidence Existing test
coverage
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Spends more time on
defect management and
triage

4. Do you spend more time here
Creating test
Cases/Steps
Requirements
document
Fix production
Defects
Traceability
Matrix
Defect
Management
Creating test plan
and strategy
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6. Specifications Driven Development
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7. EXAMPLES
Can
Become
TESTS
Elaborate
Verify
REQUIREMENTS
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8. Specifications – Focus Area
Requirements
document
Specifications
for both humans
and machines
Traceability
Matrix
Fix
production
defects
Creating
test cases
Creating test
plan and
strategy
Managing
stale artifcats
Tests as
Documentation
Defect
management
and analysis
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Specifying
Collaborately
Validating
Frequently

9. A Good Specification
Examples should be complete
Precise and Testable
True Specification – Not a script
About business functionality – Not software design
Self-explanatory and focused
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10. A Good Specification
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11. A Good Specification
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12. Benefits
Distributed teams - Necessary artifacts and re-use artifacts
One-time specification – Referred by stakeholders and team
Artifacts remain as living documents
Focus on collaboration and communication gap
More time on exploratory/business testing
Time-to-market availability
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13. Specifications – Key Process Patterns
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14. Key Process Patterns
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15. Key Process Patterns - Goals
Understand customer’s
business requirements
Understand the “Why” and
“Who”
Understand the intent and
value
Understand the Output
Team delivers complete feature
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16. Key Process Patterns - Collaboration
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17. Key Process Patterns - Examples
Requirements - Don’t provide full and
unambiguous context
Don’t have Yes/No answers in your
example
Ask for alternate way for validation
Avoid making up your own data
Avoid temptation to explore all
possibility
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18. Key Process Patterns - Refining
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19. Key Process Patterns - Refining
Don’t create workflow like descriptions
Don’t get trapped in user interface
details
Show and lets the user understand
Refined Examples = Acceptance
criteria for delivery
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20. Key Process Patterns - Refining
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21. Key Process Patterns - Automation
Plan for automation upfront
Don’t delegate automation towards the
end
Avoid automating existing manual
scripts
Automate along system boundaries with
necessary context
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Automated Specification = Executable
Specification

22. Key Process Patterns - Automation
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23. Key Process Patterns - Validation
Fix the most annoying thing, fix it and
repeat
Simpler test doubles for external
systems
Isolated environment and fully
automated deployments
Look for ways for faster feedback
Don’t just disable failing tests
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24. Key Process Patterns – Living
Documentation
Don’t create long specifications
Avoid using technical concepts in tests
Base specification on personas
Evolve the ubiquitous language and
use it consistently.
Organize based on functional areas
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25. Implementing Specifications
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26. Greenfield
Implement as part of the big
process change
Use TDD as a first step towards
Specifications
Follow the key process patterns
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27. Existing Projects
Start with automated tests
Don’t talk process or jargon words
Don’t make test automation end goal
Our Focus - Collaboration and processchange
Executable specification in the same
codebase
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28. Gauge Progress
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29. Gauge Progress
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30. Take Away
Distributed teams - Necessary artifacts and re-use artifacts
One-time specification – Referred by stakeholders and team
Artifacts remain as living documents
Focus on collaboration and communication gap
More time on exploratory/business testing
Time-to-market availability
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31. Case Studies
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32. Case Studies
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33. Tools
Twist - http://studios.thoughtworks.com/twist-agile-testautomation/
Cucumber – http://cukes.info
Concordion – http://www.concordion.org
FitNesse - http://fitnesse.org
Jbehave - http://jbehave.org
GreenPepper: http://www.greenpeppersoftware.com.
Robot Framework: http://www.robotframework.org
SpecFlow: http://www.specflow.org
TextTest: http://www.texttest.org
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34. Contact us
Sathyan Sethumadhavan
satnair@thoughtworks.com
Shalabh Varma
svarma@thoughtworks.com

35. References
a. Specification by example and Manning the specificationGojko Adzic
b. Projects implemented SDD in real-time
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