Tech Lead Journal

#184 - Contract Testing Essentials: A Comprehensive Guide - Lewis Prescott


Listen Later

“Contract testing is a form of testing where you are verifying two systems have the same shared understanding about the expectations."

Lewis Prescott is the coauthor of “Contract Testing in Action”. In this episode, join us to demystify contract testing and its critical role in modern software development. Discover how contract testing ensures reliable software integration, particularly in complex microservice architectures.

Lewis explains the core concepts, the difference between consumer-driven and provider-driven approaches, and how contract testing fits into your testing strategy and CI/CD pipeline. We also touch on the practicalities of implementing contract testing, including tool options like Pact, and how it can also be applied in event-driven architectures.

Whether you’re a seasoned developer or just starting, this episode offers valuable insights to help you level up your software development approach.  

Listen out for:

  • Career Journey - [00:01:56]
  • Problems Contract Testing is Solving - [00:04:57]
  • Contract Testing Use Cases - [00:07:20]
  • Contract Testing Components - [00:09:52]
  • Shared Understanding of the Expectations - [00:11:42]
  • Benefits of Contract Testing - [00:15:02]
  • Contract Testing in Testing Pyramid - [00:18:29]
  • Contract vs Unit vs Integration Tests - [00:19:37]
  • Contract Testing for Public APIs - [00:21:28]
  • Types of Contract Testing - [00:22:46]
  • CI/CD Workflow with Contract Testing - [00:25:33]
  • Provider Workflow - [00:31:55]
  • Getting the Buy-In - [00:33:31]
  • Owning the Broker - [00:36:00]
  • Pact & Other Tooling - [00:37:19]
  • Versioning Contracts - [00:39:34]
  • Consumer-Driven Contract Testing - [00:42:15]
  • Contract Testing for Event-Driven Architecture - [00:46:53]
  • 3 Tech Lead Wisdom - [00:49:40]
  • _____

    Lewis Prescott’s Bio
    Lewis Prescott is a Test Specialist at IBM. He has 9 years experience in software testing, is a recognized champion of Contract Testing and course author at Test Automation University, as well as an active mentor in the testing community.

    Follow Lewis:

    • LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/lewis-prescott-12409a44/
    • Website – pactman.co.uk
    • 📚 Contract Testing in Action – manning.com/books/contract-testing-in-action
    • Book’s forum – livebook.manning.com/forum?product=cruz2
    • _____

      Our Sponsors

      Enjoy an exceptional developer experience with JetBrains. Whatever programming language and technology you use, JetBrains IDEs provide the tools you need to go beyond simple code editing and excel as a developer.
      Check out FREE coding software options and special offers on jetbrains.com/store/#discounts.
      Make it happen. With code.


      Manning Publications is a premier publisher of technical books on computer and software development topics for both experienced developers and new learners alike. Manning prides itself on being independently owned and operated, and for paving the way for innovative initiatives, such as early access book content and protection-free PDF formats that are now industry standard.
      Get a 40% discount for Tech Lead Journal listeners by using the code techlead24 for all products in all formats.


      Like this episode?
      Show notes & transcript: techleadjournal.dev/episodes/184.
      Follow @techleadjournal on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram.
      Buy me a coffee or become a patron.

      ...more
      View all episodesView all episodes
      Download on the App Store

      Tech Lead JournalBy Henry Suryawirawan

      • 4.7
      • 4.7
      • 4.7
      • 4.7
      • 4.7

      4.7

      14 ratings


      More shows like Tech Lead Journal

      View all
      The Knowledge Project by Shane Parrish

      The Knowledge Project

      2,672 Listeners

      Software Engineering Radio - the podcast for professional software developers by team@se-radio.net (SE-Radio Team)

      Software Engineering Radio - the podcast for professional software developers

      273 Listeners

      The Changelog: Software Development, Open Source by Changelog Media

      The Changelog: Software Development, Open Source

      288 Listeners

      Software Engineering Daily by Software Engineering Daily

      Software Engineering Daily

      626 Listeners

      Talk Python To Me by Michael Kennedy

      Talk Python To Me

      583 Listeners

      Soft Skills Engineering by Jamison Dance and Dave Smith

      Soft Skills Engineering

      287 Listeners

      Thoughtworks Technology Podcast by Thoughtworks

      Thoughtworks Technology Podcast

      44 Listeners

      The InfoQ Podcast by InfoQ

      The InfoQ Podcast

      38 Listeners

      Syntax - Tasty Web Development Treats by Wes Bos & Scott Tolinski - Full Stack JavaScript Web Developers

      Syntax - Tasty Web Development Treats

      985 Listeners

      Today, Explained by Vox

      Today, Explained

      10,331 Listeners

      The Stack Overflow Podcast by The Stack Overflow Podcast

      The Stack Overflow Podcast

      63 Listeners

      The Big Take by Bloomberg

      The Big Take

      155 Listeners

      科技工作講 Tech Job N Talk by Tech Job N Talk 科技工作講

      科技工作講 Tech Job N Talk

      24 Listeners

      HBR On Leadership by Harvard Business Review

      HBR On Leadership

      170 Listeners

      The Pragmatic Engineer by Gergely Orosz

      The Pragmatic Engineer

      77 Listeners