How to make your retrospectives more effective

The practice of holding regular retrospectives with your team is rooted in the original agile principles.

Nonetheless sometimes you walk out of a retrospective with the feeling that the last hour and a half could have been spent more effectively. Because this is all about feedback and improvement it comes naturally to reflect on retrospectives themselves and then tune and adjust how to run them accordingly.

Transcript

1. HOW TO MAKE YOUR RETROSPECTIVES MORE EFFECTIVE ThoughtWorks Munich Meetup 25.01.2018 1
2. HELLO my name is Felix Rothballer frothballer@thoughtworks.com
3. At regular intervals, the team reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.
4. THE FIVE STEPS OF A RETROSPECTIVE Setting the Stage Gather Data Generate Insight Decide what to do Closing the Retrospective
5. GENERAL TIP The time of the day and how often you do retros makes a difference
6. SETTING THE STAGE Prime Directive
7. Regardless of what we discover, we understand and truly believe that everyone did the best job they could, given what they knew at the time, their skills and abilities, the resources available, and the situation at hand.
8. SETTING THE STAGE Prime Directive Safety Check
9. SETTING THE STAGE Prime Directive Safety Check Energizer or Ice Breaker
10. SETTING THE STAGE - Ice Breakers gone wrong The participants only reluctantly engage in the opening activity
11. SETTING THE STAGE - Ice Breakers gone wrong Too complicated game mechanics Team members not (yet) comfortable with each other
12. SETTING THE STAGE - Ice Breakers gone wrong Be mindful on the available time Choose activities that fit the team stage
13. GATHER DATA What went well? What needs improvement?
14. GATHER DATA - The rant fest The participants exclusively focus on negative events
15. GATHER DATA - The rant fest The structure and activities impact the general mood
16. GATHER DATA - The rant fest Drill down on the gathered information to find causes. Also discuss the things that work well.
17. GENERATE INSIGHT Understanding your problem Generating ideas for solutions
18. GENERATE INSIGHT - Tackling too many problems During the retrospective you run out of time Only small improvements can be achieved
19. GENERATE INSIGHT - Tackling too many problems Missing prioritization Too broad or wrong clustering
20. GENERATE INSIGHT - Tackling too many problems Clearly define problem statement
21. DECIDE WHAT TO DO Refine your action items Choose the ones with the biggest impact
22. DECIDE WHAT TO DO - Nothing happens Action items are not carried out
23. DECIDE WHAT TO DO - Nothing happens No ownership of the action items No control or influence on the problems Too ambitious goals
24. DECIDE WHAT TO DO - Nothing happens Put a name and a review date on each action item Be aware what can be controlled or influenced Be realistic about the available capacity Visualize improvement actions next to your regular work
25. CLOSING THE RETROSPECTIVE Summarize Say thanks Get feedback
26. THE FIVE STEPS OF A RETROSPECTIVE Setting the Stage Gather Data Generate Insight Decide what to do Closing the Retrospective
27. GENERAL TIP As a facilitator don’t turn your back on the group
28. THANK YOU For questions or suggestions: Felix Rothballer frothballer@thoughtworks.com