Run retrospective

Run Retrospective

Purpose

Help teams run structured retrospectives that produce honest reflection, shared learning, and concrete improvement actions — not just feel-good discussions.

Skill type

Conceptual skill

Use this skill when

• A sprint, quarter, launch, or experiment has completed and a retro is needed
• A team retro produces low-value conversations and no follow-through
• A post-mortem is needed after a failure or near-miss
• A structured review is needed before starting the next planning cycle

Do not use this skill when

• The goal is ongoing performance monitoring (use detect-performance-signals)
• The goal is stakeholder communication about results (use communicate-decisions-tradeoffs)

Required inputs

• Event or period being reflected on (sprint, launch, quarter, experiment)
• Team involved

Optional inputs

• Prior retro actions and their status
• Relevant metrics or outcome data
• Stakeholder feedback
• Known issues going in

Upstream context

Works best when:

• The period has a clear end point
• Some outcome data or observations are available

Downstream handoff

Output can feed:

• design-operating-cadence (retro findings → process improvements)
• build-roadmap-prioritization (learning feeds next cycle)

Instructions

1. Define the scope: what period or event is being reviewed?
2. Gather data before the session: metrics, events, feedback.
3. Select a retro format appropriate to the context:
   • What went well / what didn't / what to change (simple cycles)
   • Start / Stop / Continue (behavior-focused)
   • Timeline retro (complex launches or long cycles)
   • Post-mortem format (failures or incidents)
4. Generate observations across all dimensions.
5. Prioritize themes that most deserve action.
6. Define specific, owned action items (owner + due date).
7. Review prior retro actions before closing.

Output

Provide:

• Scope and context summary
• Format selected with rationale
• Key observations organized by theme
• Prioritized themes
• Action items with owner and due date
• Prior action item status (if applicable)
• One "learning statement" capturing the most important takeaway

Risks / caveats

• Retros without action items are venting sessions — always close with owned actions
• Psychological safety is a prerequisite for honest retros — do not skip it
• Review prior retro actions at the start, not the end