Many companies struggle with large, unruly codebases that only a handful of experts are capable of maintaining. To make matters worse, this code is often riddled with quality issues that are difficult to manage and require constant attention. As Menlo has discovered, test-driven development (TDD) in the context of paired programming is a way of avoiding these pitfalls. By collaboratively designing code, our entire team is set up for success. As a result, we can feel confident about the long-term stability of projects, we create less bugs, and we avoid key project information becoming isolated inside of a small number of team members ("towers of knowledge"). As a bonus, this practice also helps facilitate our company's commitment to being a learning and teaching organization!
Just like all skills however, pairing and TDD need to be learned and practiced to reap the benefits. So, how do you write test-driven code with someone else? How do you share a keyboard and mouse? And what does Menlo mean when we say it’s "important to make your partner look good"? In this four-hour workshop, participants will learn the technical best practices and soft skills needed to get the most out of pairing and TDD by working hands-on with both. With 90 minutes of pairing with a Menlo developer included, you'll do more than just learn theory by experiencing first hand how to reap the benefits and navigate the challenges of this type of programming.
You will come away knowing how to:
Due to its technical nature, this workshop is best for developer teams and their managers.