What's the difference between 'on top of this' and 'furthermore' in professional writing?

'On top of this' is neutral to slightly informal and works well in Slack or verbal updates. 'Furthermore' is more formal and better suited for design docs, RFCs, and official emails.

How do I give constructive feedback in a code review without sounding critical?

Use phrases like 'to enhance readability' or 'for a better result' to frame suggestions as shared goals. This positions your feedback as collaborative improvement rather than personal criticism.

When should I use 'as we mentioned' versus 'as previously noted'?

'As we mentioned' sounds collaborative and works well in meetings and Slack. 'As previously noted' is more formal and appropriate for written documentation like design docs and official emails.

How can I hold someone accountable for a commitment without sounding aggressive?

Use phrases like 'as agreed upon' or 'as per the commitment' followed by a question like 'Could you share an update?' This references the agreement professionally while inviting dialogue about blockers.

What's the correct pronunciation of 'additionally'?

It's pronounced /əˌdɪʃˈən.əl.i/ with five syllables and stress on the third syllable: a-DI-shun-uh-lee. A common error is saying it with only four syllables.

How to Use Linking Phrases and Commitments in English at Work

Pronunciation Guide for Key Phrases

These phrases appear frequently in meetings and presentations. Mispronouncing them can undermine your credibility. Pay attention to stress patterns and common errors.

additionally /əˌdɪʃˈən.əl.i/

a-DI-shun-uh-lee

Saying 'ad-DI-tion-ally' with four syllables instead of five

furthermore /ˈfɜː.ðə.mɔːr/

FUR-thuh-mor

Pronouncing 'th' as /t/ or /d/

enhance /ɪnˈhɑːns/

in-HAANS

Saying 'EN-hance' with stress on first syllable

commitment /kəˈmɪt.mənt/

kuh-MIT-muhnt

Saying 'com-MIT-ment' with equal stress on all syllables

accordance /əˈkɔː.dəns/

uh-KOR-duhns

Saying 'AK-kor-dance' with stress on first syllable

Why Linking Phrases Matter in Tech Communication

Whether you're writing a design doc, giving a standup update, or sending a Slack message to your PM, structured language helps your ideas land clearly. Linking phrases connect your points logically so readers and listeners can follow your reasoning without confusion.

This article covers four phrase sets that tech professionals use daily: adding points, proposing improvements, referencing earlier discussions, and holding people to agreements. Master these, and your emails, RFCs, and meeting contributions will sound more polished and professional.

Phrase Set	Purpose	Tech Use Case
On top of this / Additionally	Add another point or concern	Standup updates, incident reports
For a better result / To enhance	Propose an improvement	Code reviews, process retrospectives
As we mentioned / As previously noted	Reference earlier discussion	Design docs, follow-up emails
As per the commitment / As agreed upon	Hold someone accountable	Cross-team coordination, deliverable tracking

Adding Points: 'On Top of This' and Alternatives

When you need to stack multiple concerns or updates, phrases like 'on top of this,' 'additionally,' 'furthermore,' and 'not only that' help you build a logical sequence. These are essential for standup updates, incident timelines, and status emails where you're reporting on several items.

Phrase	Register	Example in Tech Context
On top of this	Neutral/informal	The CI pipeline is flaky. On top of this, we discovered a memory leak in the auth service.
Additionally	Formal	The sprint is at risk. Additionally, two engineers will be OOO next week.
Furthermore	Very formal	The migration requires downtime. Furthermore, rollback procedures must be documented before deployment.
Not only that	Informal/emphatic	The API is returning 500 errors. Not only that, the error logs aren't being captured properly.

Heard at Work (Weak)	Better English
Also there is another problem and the tests are failing.	On top of this, the integration tests are also failing.
And we need more time and also more engineers.	We need more time. Additionally, we should consider bringing in another engineer.
The deadline is tight. And there's more problems.	The deadline is tight. Furthermore, we've identified additional blockers.

Slack vs Email Register

In Slack: 'Also, the staging env is down.' In a formal email or RFC: 'Additionally, we have observed instability in the staging environment.' Match your register to your audience and channel.

Proposing Improvements: 'For a Better Result' and Alternatives

Code reviews, retrospectives, and process improvement discussions all require language that frames suggestions constructively. Phrases like 'for a better result,' 'to enhance,' 'to improve the outcome,' and 'to boost effectiveness' position your feedback as collaborative rather than critical.

Phrase	Grammar Pattern	Tech Example
For a better result	For + noun phrase	For a better result, consider adding unit tests before refactoring.
To enhance	To + infinitive	To enhance readability, we could extract this logic into a separate function.
To improve the outcome	To + infinitive + object	To improve the outcome of our deploys, let's add a canary stage.
To boost effectiveness	To + infinitive + object	To boost the effectiveness of our alerts, we should reduce noise from non-critical warnings.

Heard at Work (Too Direct)	Better English (Constructive)
This code is hard to read. You should fix it.	To enhance readability, we could break this into smaller functions.
The process is slow. Make it faster.	For a better result, we might consider parallelizing these API calls.
Your tests don't cover edge cases.	To improve the outcome, adding a few edge case tests would strengthen coverage.

Cultural Note: Softening Feedback

In many tech cultures, direct criticism can feel harsh. Using 'to enhance' or 'for a better result' frames your suggestion as a shared goal rather than a personal attack. This is especially important in code reviews and cross-team feedback.

Referencing Earlier Discussion: 'As We Mentioned' and Alternatives

In long email threads, multi-week projects, and design doc reviews, you often need to point back to something said before. Phrases like 'as we mentioned,' 'as previously noted,' 'as discussed earlier,' and 'as indicated before' help you do this without sounding repetitive or condescending.

Phrase	Tone	Best Used In
As we mentioned	Neutral, collaborative	Meetings, Slack threads
As previously noted	Formal, documented	Design docs, RFCs, emails
As discussed earlier	Neutral, meeting context	Follow-up emails, 1:1 notes
As indicated before	Formal, slightly firm	Escalation emails, status reports

Use 'as we mentioned' when you want to sound collaborative: 'As we mentioned in the kickoff, the API contract is frozen.'
Use 'as previously noted' in written documents: 'As previously noted in the RFC, this approach requires a database migration.'
Use 'as discussed earlier' after meetings: 'As discussed earlier, we'll prioritize the auth refactor this sprint.'
Avoid overusing these phrases—one or two per email or doc section is enough.

Heard at Work (Awkward)	Better English
Like I said before, we can't do this without more resources.	As we mentioned, this initiative requires additional engineering capacity.
I already told you the deadline is next Friday.	As previously noted, the deadline for this deliverable is next Friday.
Remember we talked about the risks?	As discussed earlier, we should revisit the risk assessment before proceeding.

Holding to Commitments: 'As Per the Commitment' and Alternatives

Cross-functional work in tech means tracking promises: a PM commits to a launch date, another team agrees to provide an API by a certain sprint, or a vendor pledges SLA guarantees. When you need to hold someone accountable—diplomatically—these phrases help you reference the agreement without sounding aggressive.

Phrase	Formality	Tech Example
As per the commitment	Very formal	As per the commitment, your team agreed to deliver the API spec by end of Q2.
As agreed upon	Formal, common	As agreed upon, we'll proceed with the migration during the maintenance window.
In accordance with our agreement	Very formal, contractual	In accordance with our agreement, the vendor will provide 99.9% uptime.
In line with our commitment	Formal, internal	In line with our commitment, we've allocated two engineers to support the integration.

Heard at Work (Too Blunt)	Better English (Diplomatic)
You said you'd finish this by Monday. Where is it?	As agreed upon, the deliverable was expected by Monday. Could you share an update?
Your team promised to fix the bug. Why isn't it done?	As per the commitment, your team agreed to address this bug by sprint end. What's the current status?
We had a deal. You're not keeping your end.	In accordance with our agreement, we expected the handoff by this milestone. Can we discuss blockers?

Cultural Note: Accountability Without Blame

In professional tech environments, accountability language should open a conversation, not assign blame. Ending with 'Could you share an update?' or 'Can we discuss blockers?' invites collaboration rather than defensiveness.

Practice Exercises

Quick Reference: Slack vs Formal Email

Register matters. Here's how to adapt your linking phrases for different channels.

Informal (Slack/Chat)	Formal (Email/Doc)
Also, the tests are failing.	Additionally, we've observed test failures in the CI pipeline.
On top of that, staging is down.	Furthermore, the staging environment is currently experiencing instability.
Like we said, the deadline is Friday.	As previously noted, the deliverable is due by end of day Friday.
You said you'd handle this by Monday.	As agreed upon, this item was expected by the start of the week.
To make this better, maybe add some tests?	To enhance reliability, we recommend adding integration tests.

Key Takeaway

These four phrase sets—adding points, proposing improvements, referencing earlier discussions, and holding to commitments—are the building blocks of clear, professional tech communication. Practice matching the phrase to the register and context, and your writing will become more structured and persuasive.

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