Do you dread going to work? Are interruptions from outside making progress difficult? Is improvement almost nil? Sprint Retrospectives are the tool to help with all of these issues, but what if they elicit frustrated groans and reluctance or, worse, resentment within your team?

1. Retrospectives
Gone Bad
A Totally Scientific
Perspective
Mark Levison – Trying to be
Agile for over 20 yrs
https://agilepainrelief.com/

2. Yes we have a book –
at least its free 
Guide to Effective Retrospectives
https://agilepainrelief.com/guide-to-effective-agile-
retrospectives

3. Ask Questions in the chat as we go

4. Totally Science
based

5. Data source #1: Twitter Survey
#Retrospectives gone bad - what your top reasons?

6. Data source #2: LinkedIn Survey
What are your top reasons for #Bad #Failed Retrospectives

7. We need our own polls
• Join at slido.com #RetrosGoneBad
Please use Slido only for the polls and
ignore the Q&A function

8. Practice Poll
• Join at slido.com #RetrosGoneBad
Heroism by MaxKoMusic | https://maxkomusic.com/

9. • Flip screen to display

10. Data source #3: random comments from
friends
• Not solving real root causes. Just swatting at flies each Sprint. – John
Miller
• The Product Owner, Scrum Master, Team Lead or manager dictating
the topics of discussion and the solutions. – Alan Daley
• Teams conclude they have no influence on (let alone direction for)
continuous improvement… - Greg Tutunjian
• Lack of commitment, consequence, and follow-through – Joseph
Pelrine

11. Your Data?
• Join at slido.com #RetrosGoneBad
The Epic 2 by Rafael Krux Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/5384-the-epic-2-

12. • Flip screen to display

13. Top 10
Retrospective Sins
Based on Years of Experience

14. Boring, Repetitive

15. All Talk No Action
Action

16. Wishful Thinking
• Aka: Vague Actions or Improvements

17. Failure to Review Past Improvements
Last Months Improvements

18. Heroes

19. Perennial
Problems

20. Managers in the
Room

21. Rushed Retro

22. The Dominator

23. Other Reasons?
• Share in the chat

24. The Cure
Or Improvements

25. Establish Simple
Ground Rules with
the team
Respect Self and Others
Silence is ok
Parking Lot is our friend
Explain Your Reasoning and
Intent

26. Systemic Fixes over Quick Fixes

27. • Sailboat Retro picture
Switch it up

28. Concrete Actions
• Long term [Goal] now [Action]
[Reduce Average Cycle Time getting Development to
“Done” sooner]
to a [Limit the Work in the “Development in Progress”
column to 4 items at a time]

29. Grow Facilitation Skills

30. Decision
Making
Protocols

31. Another
Decision
Making Tool

32. Actions In
Sprint

33. Ladder of
Inference

34. Get Real
Data

36. Morale is Data

37. Experiments trump Actions

39. Review your Experiments

40. No Magic

41. References
Retrospectives
 Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great by Diana Larsen and Esther Derby
 The Retrospective Handbook - A guide for agile teams by Patrick Kau
 FunRetrospectives: activities and ideas for making agile retrospectives more engaging by Taina Caetano and
Paulo Caroli
 Fifty Quick Ideas To Improve Your Retrospectives by Ben Williams and Tom Roden
 Retrospectives for everyone – Powerful metaphors for effective retrospectives by Madhavi Ledalla. Most
interesting and invigorating list of activities I’ve seen in a while.

42. More References
Facilitation
 Collaboration Explained: Facilitation Skills for Software Project Leaders by Jean Tabaka
 Facilitators Guide to Participatory Decision-Making by Sam Kaner
 "The Ultimate Guide to Agile Retrospectives: Facilitating Open Discussion” by Retrium
(online source)
Metrics
 Software Development Metrics by David Nicolette
 Actionable Agile Metrics by Daniel Vacanti
 When Will It be Done? by Daniel Vacanti

43. Want More? Download the Free eBook
New Guide to Effective Retrospectives
https://agilepainrelief.com/guide-to-effective-agile-retrospectives
(so new the paint is barely dry)