Quick Retrospective Template
Look back at success and failures in order to improve everyday practices.
About the Retrospective template
A Retrospective template is a tool that helps structure positive and negative feedback and plan improvements after a completed project or a working sprint. Teams use Retrospectives to reflect on their ways of working and continuously improve their production by discussing current problems and goals, brainstorming new ideas, and exploring and planning which actions need to happen to keep moving forward.
What is a Retrospective template?
A Retrospective template empowers you to run insightful meetings, take stock of your work, and iterate effectively. The term “retrospective” has gained popularity over the more common “debriefing” and “post-mortem,” since it’s more value-neutral than the other terms. Some teams refer to these meetings as “sprint retrospectives” or “iteration retrospectives,” “agile retrospectives” or “iteration retrospectives.”
Whether you are a scrum team using the agile methodology, or doing a specific type of retrospective (e.g. a mad, sad, glad retrospective), the goals are generally the same: discovering what went well, identifying the root cause of problems you had, and finding ways to do better in the next iteration.
3 benefits of using a Retrospective template
A Retrospective template helps your team solve problems and improve productivity by discussing the challenges you encountered during a sprint. One of the benefits of the retrospective format is that it gives equal power to all team members to open up and present their views.
1. Keep the retrospective organized
Using a Retrospective template helps you avoid common pitfalls. For example, the goal of the retrospective is to brainstorm areas of improvement, but some employees may use the meeting simply to air their grievances. The template functions as a project management tool that allows you to stay on track and bring everyone back to your central questions: What did we do well? How can we improve? What helped us move forward?
2. Incorporate feedback from different perspectives
Moreover, noting these central questions can empower participants to speak up. Use the Retrospective template to foster an environment in which every member of the team feels comfortable sharing their ideas. The Retrospective template is also a good exercise to analyze what held your team back and how could you do things differently.
3. Boost efficiency and set actions
Equally important, the template increases efficiency and cuts down on resource usage. Retrospective meetings tend to be costly, since they demand time and attention from a variety of stakeholders. Using the Retrospective template can help you prepare for the meeting, keep everyone on task, and clarify action items and what to do next. Since Miro’s template auto-saves, you can quickly refer to previous retrospective meetings to ensure you’re not discussing a redundant topic.
How do you use the Miro Retrospective template?
The Miro Retrospective template can help make your next sprints more productive. Apply our template and customize it in a few seconds — all changes will be saved instantly!
Communicate with your team in real-time. You can use the video chat or @mention features to boost engagement. If you have some people writing out physical sticky notes, simply take a photo of the finished whiteboard and upload it to the visual whiteboard.
You can also include other file types such as images, videos, GIFs, and documents to store everything in one place.
Why do I need a Retrospective template?
A retrospective or sprint retrospective template allows you and your team to analyze what worked well and what didn’t in a given project or working sprint. The visual representation of the retrospective contains fields for you and your team to add their points of view on how good or bad the sprint or project was. The template makes it easy to collect feedback and action items for future discussions.
How do you write a Retrospective template?
There is not a ready-made formula when it comes to how to write a retrospective. One of the essential factors for a good Retrospective template is that it looks organized, and everyone inside your team can add their points of view and ideas. Be mindful to write objectively and keep it solution-oriented.
What should I say in a retrospective meeting?
The retrospective meeting should be a safe space for you to expose ideas and come up with solutions. When participating in a sprint retrospective, it’s important to stay as objective as possible. That way, you and your team can improve processes and the way you work together. If a misunderstanding or emotions come to the surface, try to be curious and embrace this state of mind without giving room for venting grievances. Rather, share how you feel and why you feel that way and encourage others to do the same.
Get started with this template right now.
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