In the example the DatabaseSetup is an existing task type that is registered under a new name. Since that has an action body, the doFirst and doLast append logi

In the example the DatabaseSetup is an existing task type that is registered under a new name. Since that has an action body, the doFirst and doLast append logic to run around that. Thus, after setting up the database it then runs a migration and code generator phase. The more straightforward way is to define a new task and use a dependsOn relationship. val databaseSetup = tasks.register<DatabaseSetup>("databaseSetup") tasks.register<GenerateJooq>("generateJooq") { dependsOn(databaseSetup) } class GenerateJooq : DefaultTask() { @TaskAction fun run() { println("Now migrating") migrate() jooqGenerate() } } It is more code to define the custom task, but then allows for adding command-line input options. The doFirst / doLast are script shortcuts for quick proof-of-concept projects, whereas custom tasks are preferred for maintainability of long-lived ones.