What is a retrospective?
A retrospective (or "retro") is the meeting at the end of a sprint where the team inspects how the sprint went — process, communication, blockers, wins — and decides what to change for next time. It's the only ceremony focused on improving the team itself, not the product.
Common retro formats
- Start / Stop / Continue — three buckets, fast facilitation, easy for new teams.
- Mad / Sad / Glad — surfaces emotion. Best after rough sprints.
- 4Ls — Liked, Learned, Lacked, Longed for. Deeper reflection.
- Sailboat — visual metaphor (Wind / Anchors / Rocks / Island). Great on a digital whiteboard.
- KALM — Keep / Add / Less / More. Fine-grained tuning.
Generate any of these in one click with our free Retro Template Generator.
How long should a retro be?
For a two-week sprint: 60-90 minutes. Use a hard timebox per section. The value is in the actions, not the venting.
How many action items per retro?
One to three. More than that and nothing gets followed through. Each action gets an owner and a due date. If you can't assign one, drop the action.
Common retro mistakes
- Manager-led — rotate facilitation so people surface real issues.
- No follow-through — action items disappear into the void. Track them like real tickets.
- Same format every time — rotate every few sprints to keep the format fresh.
- Skipping — the easiest meeting to cancel under pressure. Cancel the demo first, not the retro.