The Business Benefits of Retrospectives

This is a part of a series that was cre­at­ed to help you get the prac­tice of ret­ro­spec­tives built into your com­pany.  This series will walk through the approach, nec­es­sary roles, in addi­tion to guides for each role to help your com­pany get started quickly.

Why Conduct Retrospectives?

Retrospectives and AARs provide quick results in a short time and can be applied to a broad range of activities. They are simple, adaptable, and scalable. Importantly, they empower individuals and teams to remove barriers together quickly and effectively.

Other benefits include:

Team-oriented

•    Helps the team identify and fix problems
•    Develops a team and project culture that values open and honest feedback
•    Improves team cohesiveness and productivity
•    Helps eliminate issues that might otherwise fester
•    Helps clarify goals, roles, and communication needs
•    Identifies people issues as well as process issues
•    Gets people to commit to making necessary changes

Process-oriented

•    Provides a list of things that went well and common items to improve
•    Provides better insight into operational performance
•    Identifies where preventive measures can be taken to reduce project risks
•    Increases efficiency of project planning and process development

Knowledge-oriented

•    Knowledge gained helps avert future crises
•    Establishes repeatable, successful behaviors
•    Creates a knowledge-based learning culture
•    Enables you to position the company as a learning entity

Next week, I’ll share some insights as to why retrospectives are a company-wide strategy.