RestrospectiveTechniques - iDIA Computing

Outline

If an outside facilitator, interview participants ahead of time.
Ask "the attendees to become high-tech archaeologists and search their office for important artifacts related to their project." [Kerth]

Understand what a retrospective is, and is not.
Prime Directive
- Regardless of what we discover, we understand and truly believe that everyone did the best job they could, given what they knew at the time, their skills and abilities, the resources available, and the situation at hand. - Norm Kerth James Shore recommends asking each participant individually for verbal acceptance of the Prime Directive.
Secret ballots to measure sense of safety, at the beginning and after establishing rules.
Establish ground rules
- We will try not to interrupt.
- We will accept everyone's opinion without judgment.
- We will talk from our own perspective, and not speak for anyone else.
- There will be no jokes about other people in the room.
- These ground rules can be amended after any break.
Consider splitting into natural-affinity groups (e.g., managers and developers) to reduce duplication or enhance safety.
Talking Stick

Timeline [Kerth] [Derby-notes]
Artifacts Exercise [Kerth] -- Display the artifacts collected ahead of time
Collect list of memorable events that were enjoyable, frustrating, or puzzling. [Shore]
Think of things you'd like to see increase, decrease, and remain the same. [Shore]

Dumb Mapping (10 minutes) [Shore]
- Categorize and group
- Vote (dots) on most important

Mining the Timeline for Gold Exercise [Kerth]
- "We worked through the whole project, looking for what worked well, what lessons were learned, what could be done differently next time, and what topics needed more detailed study." [Kerth] [http://www.retrospectives.com/pages/RetrospectiveKeyQuestions.html The 4 Key Questions]
Define Success Exercise [Kerth]
- measures of success
  - How does the team feel?
  - Compared to industry norms
  - another definition of success: "At the end of a successful project, everybody says, Gee, I wish we could do it again. [Kerth]
- also Pete Deemer's [http://www.estherderby.com/weblog/archive/2006_08_01_archive.html#115636095287566434 story]

Cross-Affinity Teams Exercise [Kerth]
- "reviewed, organized and prioritized the topics that needed more detailed study"
- study their assigned problem from many perspectives
- look for a number of possible solutions
- develop a proposal

Offer Appreciations Exercise [Kerth]
Session without Managers Exercise [Kerth]
- Developers' message to Managers; Managers' message to Developers
Repair Damage through Play Exercise [Kerth]
Making the Magic Happen Exercise [Kerth]
- A) watching the process and guiding it, providing opportunities for all to be heard, and respecting everyones opinions and privacy;
- helping the group work under guidelines that yield healthy human interactions;
- C) being willing to work with emotions as they came up.
Appreciative Inquiry [Davies-jiggling]
Rich Pictures [Davies-jiggling]
http://www.twelve71.org/blogs/rachel/archives/000019.html
http://www.twelve71.org/blogs/rachel/archives/000752.html
http://www.twelve71.org/blogs/rachel/archives/000599.html
http://www.twelve71.org/blogs/rachel/archives/000043.html
Patrick Kua's [http://www.thekua.com/atwork/2007/12/05/retrospective-safety-exercise-three-word-starter/ Three Word Starter] is offered as an alternative safety exercise, but seems more like a temperature reading to me.