016. Leading Code Reviews

Stop me if you've heard this one before: a technical leader walks into a code review, and everyone's productivity grinds to a halt. Without realizing it, and with the best of intentions, many technical leaders become the bottleneck when it comes to reviewing their team's code.

In this edition, we'll discuss some best practices that you can adopt to streamline your code review process and make it more productive.

Hot take alert: you, as a technical leader, should not be doing code reviews yourself. Or only very rarely. Why?

You don't scale.

As a technical leader, your role is to guide your team, build the roadmap, and ensure the overall quality of the code. Code reviews are a critical part of the development process, but they can also be time-consuming, especially if you have a large team. Instead, you should delegate the task of code reviews to your team members, who will benefit from the experience of examining and learning from each other's code. This can help develop a culture of collaboration.

This doesn't mean that you should completely check out of the code review process. Your team needs you to provide context and direction from a big-picture, product-focused perspective. As a technical leader, you are the liaison for other parts of the broader organization, and it's your responsibility to bring information to the team that will help them understand the larger picture. You have the strategic vision and technical expertise to provide guidance on how the code fits into the product roadmap and the business goals.

Your team members may be focused on the nitty-gritty details of the code, but you have the perspective to see the bigger picture. By providing context and direction, you can help your team make informed decisions about the code they are reviewing.

Invest your time upfront in creating clear guidelines and expectations for the code review process. As a technical leader, it's your responsibility to set the tone for how code reviews should be conducted. Create a code review checklist that covers the most critical aspects of the code, such as coding standards, test coverage, and performance. Establish clear guidelines for how to provide feedback and ensure that everyone is on the same page.

Your team members will be able to conduct code reviews effectively and efficiently, freeing up your time to focus on providing context and direction. You can review the feedback provided by your team members and ensure that they are following the established guidelines. By doing so, you can ensure that your team is equipped to conduct effective code reviews, and that the code produced meets the highest quality standards and aligns with the broader goals of the organization.

Delegating code reviews to your team members doesn't mean that you should git checkout completely (sorry, couldn't resist). As a technical leader, it's important to stay involved in the process and provide guidance and support when needed.

Be available to answer questions and provide feedback on the overall quality of the code and how well it meets the business goals. Review the feedback provided by your team members and ensure that they are following the established guidelines. Provide guidance on how to address any issues that have been identified, and offer suggestions for improvement where necessary.

By staying involved, you can ensure that your team is conducting effective code reviews and that the code produced meets the highest quality standards.

1. Delegate code reviews to team members: As a technical leader, your role is to guide your team, build the roadmap, and ensure the overall quality of the code. Code reviews are a critical part of the development process, but they can also be time-consuming, especially if you have a large team. Delegating the task of code reviews to your team members will help develop a culture of collaboration.

2. Invest time upfront in creating clear guidelines: To ensure that code reviews are conducted effectively, invest time upfront in creating clear guidelines and expectations. Create a code review checklist that covers critical aspects of the code, such as coding standards, test coverage, and performance. Establish clear guidelines for providing feedback and ensure that everyone is on the same page.

3. Stay involved in the process: Your team needs you to provide context and direction from a big-picture, product-focused perspective. Review the feedback provided by your team members and ensure that they are following the established guidelines. By staying involved, you can ensure that your team produces high-quality code that successfully achieves the broader business goals of the organization.

That's all for this edition. Remember, by delegating the task of code reviews to your team members, investing your time upfront, and staying involved, you can create a culture of collaboration and produce high-quality code while not becoming your team's bottleneck.