Retrospectives (General)
A Retrospective is a recurring meeting where a team reflects on its recent work period to identify what went well, what could be improved, and what actions to take for continuous improvement.
Explanation
Retrospectives are a cornerstone of agile continuous improvement and are not limited to Scrum. Any team using any methodology can benefit from regular retrospectives. The twelfth agile principle states that the team regularly reflects on how to become more effective, then tunes and adjusts its behavior accordingly.
Retrospecti ves come in many formats beyond the simple what-went-well/what-to-improve structure. Popular formats include Start-Stop-Continue, the 4Ls (Liked, Learned, Lacked, Longed For), the sailboat metaphor (wind = helps, anchors = slows), timeline retrospectives, and appreciative inquiry. Varying the format keeps the practice fresh and surfaces different types of insights.
The most important aspect of a retrospective is follow-through. Identifying improvements is only valuable if the team actually implements them. Best practice is to select one or two actionable improvements and add them to the next iteration's work. Teams that consistently act on retrospective insights see compounding improvement over time.
Key Points
- •Regular reflection on process for continuous improvement
- •Not limited to Scrum; applicable to any team or methodology
- •Many formats: Start-Stop-Continue, 4Ls, sailboat, timeline, and more
- •Follow-through on action items is critical for realizing value
Exam Tip
Retrospectives are about continuous improvement of the process. The most important outcome is actionable improvement items, not just discussion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Topics
Sprint Retrospective
The Sprint Retrospective is a Scrum event where the Scrum Team inspects how the last Sprint went with regard to people, relationships, processes, and tools, and creates a plan for improvements.
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The twelve Agile Principles are guiding statements behind the Agile Manifesto that describe how agile teams should operate, emphasizing early and continuous delivery of value, welcoming change, and sustainable development.
Lean Principles
Lean Principles are a set of practices derived from the Toyota Production System that focus on maximizing customer value while minimizing waste, forming a foundation for agile and Kanban practices.
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