Effective Code Reviews with Conventional Comments • Paul Slaughter & Adrienne Braganza • GOTO 2025

This interview was recorded for GOTO Unscripted. #GOTOcon #GOTOunscripted https://gotopia.tech Read the full transcription of this interview here: https://gotopia.tech/articles/372 Paul Slaughter - Staff Fullstack Engineer at GitLab & Creator of Conventional Comments @souldzin Adrienne Braganza Tacke - Senior Developer Advocate at Viam Robotics & Author of "Looks Good To Me: Constructive Code Reviews" @adriennebraganzatacke RESOURCES Paul https://x.com/souldzin https://github.com/souldzin https://gitlab.com/pslaughter https://gitlab.com/souldzin https://souldzin.com Adrienne https://bsky.app/profile/abt.bsky.social https://x.com/AdrienneTacke https://github.com/AdrienneTacke https://www.linkedin.com/in/adriennetacke https://www.instagram.com/adriennetacke https://www.adrienne.io https://blog.adrienne.io Links https://conventionalcomments.org https://youtu.be/3NdTNJyuWbA https://youtu.be/I9mBP0v-L_o https://youtu.be/LTFe7Zj-hzQ https://youtu.be/4wH-BI2YeX4 https://youtu.be/AYUNI2Pm6_w https://youtu.be/c68K94-hJK8 https://youtu.be/28S4CVkYhWA DESCRIPTION Can "Conventional Comments" transform code reviews from frustrating experiences into productive collaborations? Paul Slaughter shares his experience developing and practicing "Conventional Comments", a structured approach to improving code review communications through labeled feedback. The conversation explores clear communication patterns with labels (e.g. 'suggestion:', 'issue:' or 'question:'). Paul and Adrienne discuss the importance of empathy in the review process, the balance between politeness and efficiency, and how GitLab's Code Review Weekly Workshops have helped normalize review experiences across their remote teams. The interview highlights that effective code reviews depend not just on technical evaluations but on thoughtful communication that acknowledges developers' emotional investment in their work while fostering a culture of collaborative ownership. TIMECODES 00:00 Intro 01:32 Conventional Comments: Origins & structure 09:34 The most common labels & their uses 14:01 Navigating disagreements in code reviews 19:01 Code review culture & communication 28:54 Code review weekly workshops & team learning 41:03 Outro RECOMMENDED BOOKS Adrienne Braganza Tacke • "Looks Good to Me": Constructive Code Reviews • https://amzn.to/3E75XrD Adrienne Braganza Tacke • Coding for Kids • https://amzn.to/3Ukd5Gw Grace Huang • Code Reviews in Tech • https://amzn.to/4fbwYr8 Martin Fowler • Refactoring • https://amzn.to/3EVcHXQ Matthew Skelton & Manuel Pais • Team Topologies • http://amzn.to/3sVLyLQ Dave Thomas & Andy Hunt • The Pragmatic Programmer • https://amzn.to/3azvUy3 https://bsky.app/profile/gotocon.com https://twitter.com/GOTOcon https://www.linkedin.com/company/goto- https://www.instagram.com/goto_con https://www.facebook.com/GOTOConferences #CodeReviews #ConventionalComments #TeamDynamics #CodeQuality #PairProgramming #TeamHappiness #SoftwareEngineering #Programming #TodayInTech #AdrienneBraganza #AdrienneTacke #PaulSlaughter CHANNEL MEMBERSHIP BONUS Join this channel to get early access to videos & other perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs_tLP3AiwYKwdUHpltJPuA/join Looking for a unique learning experience? Attend the next GOTO conference near you! Get your ticket at https://gotopia.tech Sign up for updates and specials at https://gotopia.tech/newsletter SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNEL - new videos posted almost daily. https://www.youtube.com/user/GotoConferences/?sub_confirmation=1