The general purpose of code review is for development teams to recognise and remedy bugs before code hits production. That’s the traditional view. Yet we also believe that code review can accomplish much more than just that one pragmatic outcome—especially if leaders and managers become meaningful participants in the review process.

In this guide, we’ve assembled foundational resources for software engineering leaders to be able to communicate concisely about the outcomes of code review (both the traditional goal of higher-quality code as well as improved collaboration and problem-solving within teams). This guide also highlights the manager’s role in the code review process, including eight review dynamics common to engineering teams. These dynamics include ways to recognise various working patterns in teams, and ways to leverage these insights to coach the team towards more sustainable practices and help reduce any friction in working together.