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We all learn from experience. But when you're under pressure to deliver quick results, it can be easy to forget what you've learned.
Agile Project Management offers a solution: the sprint retrospective.
Sprints are short bursts of activity during which specific work must be completed and made ready for review.
They are followed by a sprint retrospective, during which teams can evaluate the effectiveness of the sprint, and discuss how they'll handle things better next time.
Agile experts, Esther Derby and Diana Larsen, suggest splitting Sprint Retrospectives into five clear stages.
The first step is to set the stage. Lay out how you want to approach the discussion, and what you aim to achieve.
Encourage people to speak freely, and assure them that the meeting isn't about passing blame or judgment.
Ask each person to give a one-word summary of their feelings about the project. This will give you immediate insight into the issues that are most important to the team.
Next, gather data. Check all the relevant facts and figures, and identify any areas of frustration.
Look closely at your processes: compare what should have been delivered with what was delivered. What slowed the team down? What stopped you achieving your objectives?
When you've analyzed the data, take note of the group's insights. What didn't work, and why? But avoid overlooking the group's successes – if something worked well once, it may do again!
