I have been working with Agile/SCRUM for some time now. I am an evangelical supporter of it.
The SCRUM process provides a platform for success based on agility, accountability and team work. One of the very best aspects of SCRUM, the Sprint Retrospective, is a source of both good and evil.
The Good
The sprint retrospective allows teams to call out the things that went well during the sprint. This process outlines the positive/outstanding aspects of the sprint.
- “The team did a great job during the demo”
- “Team communication”
The second and most important part of the retro is “What can we do better?” (or “What did not go so well?”). This discussion allows teams to identify the aspects of the sprint that did not go well and should be improved or flat eliminated from future sprints.
- “Not enough time allocated to testing”
- “Stake holders not engaged enough”
The third step in the sprint retrospective is recommendations and action items. These items are generally derived from the “What can we do better?” phase of the retro. These lists are used to make future sprints more successful.
Recommendations
- “Add more testing resources”
- “Follow up more often with stake holders”
Action Items
- “Meet with testing team manager to gain more testing resources”
The Bad
The sprint retro also has an evil side.
During the “What went well?” phase of the retro, some teams can get a tad, and in some cases more than a tad, self-congratulatory, calling out items that were simply part of the sprint.
In some cases, teams will glorify successes based on a previous failure.
- “We got everything done!” (Even though we had to extend the sprint)
Teams will also comment on the same “successes” in each sprint. Listing items as successful for each sprint devalues any accomplishment.
- “We had a stand up every day!”
The “What can we do better?” phase has some potential for evil too.
Calling out a specific failure of a team member is one of them. This practice should be shut-down immediately by the SCRUM master. In SCRUM, the team is a sum of its parts.
“All for one and one for all!”
Sprint retro evils are usually the product of a new team or team members that are new to the SCRUM methodology. Evils came raise their ugly heads with teams that have grown over-confident and too comfortable. The SCRUM master should control the Evils as the pop up.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line is: The sprint retrospective is a time for honesty and support. Be honest about your successes and your failures.
Pumping up successes and under reporting failures will (not can --- WILL) lead you down the path to the Dark Side.
Thanks for listening.
(Special shout out to BizTodd! Thanks for the edit!)