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retrospectives

Productivity
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Master sprint retrospectives with various formats, action planning, and continuous improvement techniques for team effectiveness.

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How to use this skill

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Source SKILL.md: https://github.com/majiayu000/claude-skill-registry/blob/HEAD/skills/data/retrospectives/SKILL.md

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Sprint Retrospectives

Facilitate effective retrospectives that drive continuous improvement through honest reflection and actionable commitments.

When to Use This Skill

  • End of each sprint
  • Team improvement
  • Process optimization
  • Relationship building
  • Learning from mistakes
  • Celebrating success
  • Identifying patterns
  • Cultural development

Core Concepts

1. Retrospective Formats

Start-Stop-Continue:

  • Start: What should we begin doing?
  • Stop: What should we stop doing?
  • Continue: What's working well?

Mad-Sad-Glad:

  • Mad: What frustrated us?
  • Sad: What disappointed us?
  • Glad: What made us happy?

4Ls:

  • Liked: What went well?
  • Learned: What did we discover?
  • Lacked: What was missing?
  • Longed for: What do we wish for?

Sailboat:

  • Wind (helping): What's pushing us forward?
  • Anchor (hindering): What's slowing us down?
  • Island (goal): Where are we heading?
  • Rocks (risks): What threats exist?

2. Retrospective Agenda (90 min)

1. Set the Stage (5 min)
   - Safety check
   - Prime directive
   - Agenda overview

2. Gather Data (15 min)
   - Timeline of sprint
   - Metrics review
   - Individual reflection

3. Generate Insights (30 min)
   - Group discussion
   - Identify patterns
   - Vote on themes

4. Decide What to Do (30 min)
   - Brainstorm actions
   - Select 1-3 improvements
   - Assign owners
   - Define done

5. Close the Retro (10 min)
   - Summarize actions
   - Retro feedback
   - Appreciation

3. Action Items

## Sprint 12 Retrospective Actions

**Action 1**: Improve code review turnaround
- Owner: Bob
- What: Review PRs within 4 hours
- Success: Average review time < 4hrs
- Due: Next sprint

**Action 2**: Reduce technical debt
- Owner: Team
- What: Allocate 20% capacity to refactoring
- Success: 10 story points per sprint
- Due: Ongoing

**Action 3**: Better documentation
- Owner: Alice
- What: Update README and API docs
- Success: New dev can onboard in 1 day
- Due: Sprint 13

Best Practices

  1. Psychological safety - Prime directive, no blame
  2. Vary the format - Keep it fresh
  3. Focus on actionable - Concrete improvements
  4. Limit action items - 1-3 maximum
  5. Assign owners - Clear responsibility
  6. Track progress - Review in next retro
  7. Celebrate wins - Recognize achievements
  8. Time-box activities - Keep moving

Resources

  • Agile Retrospectives: Esther Derby & Diana Larsen
  • Retromat.org: 100+ retrospective activities