The Art of Code Review: Building Better Teams

Code reviews are one of the most powerful tools for building high-performing engineering teams. Yet, many teams struggle to make them effective and constructive.

Why Code Reviews Matter

Beyond catching bugs, code reviews serve multiple purposes:

1. Knowledge sharing across the team
2. Maintaining code quality and consistency
3. Mentoring junior developers
4. Building collective ownership

Best Practices

Here are the principles I follow when reviewing code:

1. Be Kind and Constructive

Remember there’s a human on the other side. Frame feedback as suggestions, not commands.

Instead of “This is wrong”, try “Have you considered using X pattern here? It might help with Y”

2. Focus on the Important Stuff

Don’t nitpick formatting if you have automated linters. Focus on:

• Logic errors and edge cases
• Security vulnerabilities
• Performance implications
• Architectural concerns

3. Approve Fast, Block Rarely

If the code works and is reasonably clean, approve it. Perfect is the enemy of shipped.

Building a culture of constructive code reviews takes time, but it’s one of the best investments you can make in your team.