Code Review

Recommended Practices

• Small changes allow for faster code review and enhance the feedback loops.
• Everyone on the team is capable of performing code review.
• Code reviews are the second highest priority for a team behind blocked issues and ahead of WIP.

Tips

• Automate coding standards instead of reviewing for them.
• Focus the review on the tests and code readability. The tests should meet the acceptance criteria agreed upon by the team.
• Keep pull requests small. Look into Work Decomposition for guidance.
• Use synchronous code review to remove communication delays.
• As the person being reviewed, remember the 10 Commandments of Code Review
  • Thou shalt not take it personally
  • Thou shalt not marry thy code
  • Thou shalt consider all feedback
  • Thou shalt articulate thy rationale
  • Thou shalt be willing to compromise
  • Thou shalt contribute to others’ code reviews
  • Thou shalt treat submitters how thou would like to be treated
  • Thou shalt not be intimidated by the number of comments
  • Thou shalt not repeat the same mistakes
  • Thou shalt embrace the nits

References

• The 10 Commandments of Navigating Code Reviews