Cure Those Retros!
Are you not getting what you want from your Agile retrospectives? Cure yourself with this week’s selection of inspiring tips, resources, and stories.
Agile Matinée is a fortnightly curated dispatch by Panaxeo, one Agile topic at a time. We bribe five Agile enthusiasts with croissants and expect them to collect interesting and read-worthy content in return. This one is on retrospectives.
1. Research’d — Effective retrospectives measurably improve team performance!
To kick off with a focus on value, we found this in the Impact of Agile Quantified report:
Effective retrospectives result in teams with 20% higher balanced performance than teams with no retrospectives.
We knew it! But it’s nice to have it confirmed.
Our Tip: Send this to that manager who pressures teams to “stop that retro slacking-off thingy.”
2. From the trenches — When Developers get a turn facilitating a Retrospective
Who said only the Scrum Master could facilitate a retrospective?
In this short & sweet post, Lu-Vuong describes his experience facilitating a retrospective as a Developer. Kudos to him for putting considerable effort into planning and executing an engaging agenda.
More interestingly, the story showcases the concept of an alternating facilitator gone right. If you feel your team is disengaged or doesn’t appreciate the value of retrospectives, a little rotation might help turn things around.
I think it's a great idea that everyone on the team should have a turn at facilitating a retro. By alternating facilitators, it allows each retrospective to have a different format as well as a unique perspective since it won't always be the same individual running it.
3. Common Sins — 9 Agile Retrospective anti-patterns
Kaboom! An on-point checklist of common maladies that lead to ineffective or outright frustrating Sprint retrospectives.
Whether a junior Scrum Master or a seasoned Agilist, you’ll be familiar with at least one of the anti-patterns on the list, defo.
Our tip: Scan this whenever you feel there’s something wrong with your retros. Chances are you’ll find a hint.
4. Team First — 3 Tips on Fostering Psychological Safety
The previous article foreshadowed a critical enabler for open and productive retrospectives – psychological safety.
Teams that experience psychological safety are generally happier, more productive, and ready to engage in new ideas and experiments.
If you are unfamiliar with the concept, this short primer from our beloved Scrum.org will get you up to speed in 4 minutes.
5. Get funky! — The Dog-loving Facilitator’s Retrospective Template
We love this one and you’ll love it too. Who says dogs can’t be used as facilitation tools?
Ondrej Papanek created a Miro template around the idea of visiting a dog park. He skilfully incorporated typical retro activities like the mood gauge, idea gathering, and action planning. The “ice-breaker” part is implicit — classy!
If dogs are your team’s thing, this template might unleash (ha-ha) a great discussion.
6. The G.O.A.T. — Retrospective Wiki; a bottomless pit of practical knowledge
Unparalleled in its breadth of useful content, this is the rightful king of this digest.
In hundreds of Wiki entries, you’ll find a broad menu of retrospective plans, tools, exercises, diagnostic strategies, tips & tricks… Well, anything you could have ever wished for.
Treat it as reference material, a source of random inspiration, or a leisure activity. Up to you.
Retrospective Wiki is run by Bob Rowley. What a legend.
7. Hidden Gem — Do you know the SBI technique of effective feedback?
While not a traditional Agile bookshelf piece, Radical Candor interestingly converges with Agile values and tactics.
An appetizer; structuring your feedback in a Situation — Behaviour — Impact triptych can help keep difficult conversations non-confrontational, productive, and respectful. If you seek new perspectives on leadership, this book will save your next rainy weekend.
Fancy a quick run-down on the SBI technique? Read this instead.
Bonus tip! — The CEU practice of decorating retrospective items by Jeff Sutherland
Buried within the 220 pages of The Scrum Papers, there is a small, handy trick on page 26.
Jeff suggests one final look at the board before concluding a retrospective. Label each item as C (”caused by Scrum”), E (”exposed by Scrum”), and U (”Unknown”).
Potential benefits are manyfold. It might help make the benefits of Scrum more apparent to the team. Maybe spark a deeper discussion about an item vis-à-vis the process. Occasionally, it might even question the fit of the Scrum framework for the project & its environment.
Tip: Indulging in The Scrum Papers is a serious commitment but worth every penny. Remember – if you are serious about Scrum, whatever Jeff writes is a must-read.
That’s it, we’re off.
Hope you’ve basked enough in this Agile well of inspiration. Now go about your day and put this stuff into practice! Unless you want to miss our next digest, follow us on LinkedIn.
Hasta la Agilista, baby!