Retrospective in Agile

The agile software development model is now a popular software development model that is widely used by every IT industry for product development. Various meetings, practices, and teams are part of Agile development. An Agile Retrospective is one of the important meetings that is conducted mostly at the end of every product release. In this article, you will get to know more about what, where, why, how, and by whom this meeting is conducted.  

What is Agile Retrospective?

The term is agile refers to “Software Development Methodology” and retrospective refers to "The act of looking back at the previous days of a project and identifying the following".  

• What went WELL?
• What went WRONG?
• How to IMPROVE?

Software development teams conduct agile retrospective meetings and in these meetings, they analyze the sprint (certain period of a recent project. Like last week or a month of the project). That's why some call it a “Sprint retrospective” as well.

The meeting is to identify the key points mentioned above.  

• It is team-oriented and time-bound, and it happens especially at the end of a project.
• Usually, 5 to 10 people(depending on the project members) take part in this meeting which lasts an hour, sometimes a couple of hours.
• Team members will express their opinions about the previous project being discussed. That will eventually bring out the answers to the key points.

=> Agile retrospective = Continuous improvement of an agile software development team

Importance of Agile Retrospective

The main objective of the meeting is to unveil the key points to help the teamwork better than it has been working.

• Team members do the analysis, so they can easily adapt to better approaches and drop ineffective practices.
• It helps the team deliver their part fastly and more effectively.
• Open-minded discussion in the team will open up endless creative ideas to improve.
• By the end of the meeting, the team will know: what practices to continue, what to stop, and what actionable steps need to be taken to work better than before.

Why Agile Retrospective?

• Retrospectives help the Agile teams enhance their product quality and overall effectiveness.
• Following one of the 4 Agile Values, “Individuals and interactions over processes and tools”, Retrospectives give rise to team-bonding activities and team collaboration.
• Retrospectives are very crucial to analyze the current working environment.
• It helps to raise positivity and chemistry among team members.
• These meetings provide overall feedback into the iterations as to what changes the team needs to make to satisfy customer requirements and adapt to ever-changing requirements.
• These meetings provide transparency in the development process. Every team member is open to discussing the set of problems he faced or modifications he thinks could optimize the development process.

Conducting Agile Retrospective:

There are multiple ways to do an agile retrospective. Each of them slightly differs from one to another, yet the end goal is the same.  And we are going to see one of the popular and widely used approaches i.e. the five-stage approach.

1. Set the Stage:

• Kick-start by inviting the concerned people to the meeting.
• Set up the meeting room and stuff that will help the team visually understand the retrospective.
• If it's an in-person meeting, then a whiteboard will be good enough.
• A remote meeting needs an application to interact and visually represent ideas. Like, Microsoft Teams, Trello board, Confluence, and so on, and it is time for the team to take it ahead.

2. Gather Data:

• Make a table having 3 columns (what went well, what went wrong & what requires improvement).
• Put data from the sprint into those columns respectively. The data can be actions taken, results that occurred, decisions made, new approaches undertaken, milestones accomplished, and anything important in the sprint.

3. Generate Insights:

• It is time for expressing ideas not for criticizing others.
• Observe, analyze and understand the “problems, patterns and possibilities of improvements in the gathered data”.
• Once their brains get the required input with the data, they will start ANALYZING them.
• And then discuss. By this time, each one of the attendees of the meeting will be expressing their opinions and start finding smart solutions.
• Make an Action Plan, After stage 3, the team knows what they should stop doing, what they should start doing, and an ideal approach that brings in the real improvement of teamwork.

5. Close the Retrospective:

• Hereby, the meeting has come to the end. So, review the retrospective and the action plan.
• Fuel the fire inside by appreciating the efforts of the team for reaching the milestones successfully.
• Make note of the meeting in a document/record the meeting for future references.
• Get feedback on the retrospective.
• At last, do not forget to express Thank you for the cordial cooperation and for coming up with fruitful ideas. And then end the meeting.

Common discussions in Agile Retrospective:

1. What worked perfectly this sprint?
2. Did Code take a longer time than expected?
3. What is blocking our work?
4. What Alternative methods we can opt for?
5. What didn’t go well but could’ve been done better?
6. What to focus on in the next iteration?
7. What surprised you in this sprint?
8. Shout-out to the team members who helped me.
9. What things can we be proud of?
10. Could we’ve delivered even faster?
11. What problems did you face in the previous iteration?
12. How did you deal with those issues?
13. Did anything go over budget?
14. Any stress/Problem in real life.
15. Surprise factors of this iteration

Benefits of Agile Retrospective:

• Smart solutions are found for the team and by the team.
• Doorstep for faster delivery of software products.
• Self-evaluation improves the overall productivity of the team.
• The team is in charge of how they are going to function. So they will do their work with more involvement.
• Coordination is improved as well.
• Chance to know the individual's perceptions as well as to know their strengths and weaknesses.

Types of Agile Retrospective Workflows and Techniques

There are various workflows and techniques for conducting Agile Retrospectives, each with its unique approach. Some popular techniques include:

1. Start, Stop, Continue

Description: This technique is straightforward and effective, particularly for new teams. It helps the team focus on actionable feedback by categorizing their reflections into three areas:

Start: Actions or practices the team should begin implementing.

Stop: Actions or practices that are not working and should be discontinued.

Continue: Actions or practices that are working well and should be maintained.

Benefits:

• Easy to understand and implement.
• Provides clear, actionable items.
• Encourages continuous improvement by focusing on positive actions.

2. Sailboat Retrospective

Description: This visual metaphor uses the concept of a sailboat to help teams identify various aspects of their sprint. The sailboat represents the team, the wind represents driving forces, the anchor represents restraining forces, and the rocks represent potential risks.

Components:

Sailboat: The team or project.

Wind: Factors that are helping the team move forward.

Anchor: Factors that are holding the team back.

Rocks: Risks or obstacles that could cause problems.

Island: The team’s goals or objectives.

Benefits:

• Engages team members with a visual and interactive method.
• Helps identify both positive and negative influences.
• Encourages comprehensive analysis of the sprint.

3. 4Ls Retrospective

Description: This technique categorizes feedback into four distinct areas:

Liked: Things the team enjoyed or appreciated.

Learned: New knowledge or skills gained during the sprint.

Lacked: Areas where the team felt something was missing.

Longed For: Aspirations or hopes for future improvements.

Benefits:

• Encourages balanced reflection on both positive and negative aspects.
• Helps identify opportunities for improvement and areas of success.
• Facilitates a structured discussion.

4. Mad, Sad, Glad

Description: This technique focuses on the emotional responses of team members to the sprint. It helps address team morale and interpersonal dynamics by categorizing feedback into three emotions:

Mad: Issues that caused frustration or anger among team members.

Sad: Things that made team members unhappy or disappointed.

Glad: Things that made team members happy or satisfied.

Benefits:

• Helps uncover emotional dynamics within the team.
• Encourages open and honest communication.
• Can improve team morale by addressing emotional issues.

5. KALM (Keep, Add, Less, More)

Description: This technique helps the team identify elements to keep, add, do less of, or do more of:

Keep: Practices that are working well and should be maintained.

Add: New ideas or practices to introduce.

Less: Actions or practices to reduce.

More: Actions or practices to increase.

Benefits:

• Provides a balanced approach to feedback.
• Encourages iterative improvements.
• Helps the team focus on actionable items for continuous improvement.

Agile Retrospective Best Practices

To ensure productive and effective retrospectives, consider the following best practices:

• Create a Safe Environment: Ensure that team members feel safe to express their thoughts and opinions without fear of judgment.
• Facilitate Open Communication: Promote transparent and honest dialogue among team members.
• Focus on Actionable Insights: Aim to derive actionable insights that can lead to tangible improvements.
• Rotate the Facilitator: Rotate the facilitator role to get different perspectives and keep the meetings fresh.
• Use Visual Aids: Utilize visual aids like whiteboards, sticky notes, or online tools to help team members articulate their thoughts.

What is an Agile Retrospective Agenda?

An Agile Retrospective agenda typically includes:

• Introduction: Briefly explain the purpose and agenda of the meeting.
• Set the Stage: Warm-up activities to get everyone engaged.
• Gather Data: Collect and examine information from the sprint.
• Generate Insights: Discuss the data and identify insights.
• Decide on Actions: Agree on actionable steps to improve.
• Close the Meeting: Summarize the discussion, document the outcomes, and thank the participants.

The agenda can be customized to fit the team's needs and the chosen retrospective approach. The key is to ensure that the meeting remains focused, productive, and time-bound.

Conclusion:

The goals of Agile Retrospectives have always been to continuously enhance processes, collaboration, and product delivery. Retrospectives are not just a ritual, but a crucial part of agile development methodology. They are crucial in analyzing the current working environment and aiding in raising positivity and chemistry among team members. At last agile retrospectives are important to adjust the system against frequently ever-changing requirements and amendments. Not only does it provide transparency in the development process but also enhances team coordination and team bonding.