Team Retrospectives
Retrospectives are a valuable tool for continuous improvement, and they should not be limited to just Sprints or work-related topics. Team retrospectives offer a broader perspective on the team’s dynamics, collaboration, and overall effectiveness. Here are some key points to emphasize when conducting team Retrospectives.
Holistic Assessment: Encourage the team to look beyond the specific tasks or projects they’ve been working on. A team retrospective provides an opportunity to assess the overall health and performance of the team.
Team Dynamics: Explore how the team members interact with each other. Are there clear communication channels? Is there a sense of trust and psychological safety within the team? How are conflicts resolved? These are important aspects to consider.
Strengths and Weaknesses: Identify and celebrate the team’s strengths and successes. This positive reinforcement can boost morale and motivation. Simultaneously, acknowledge weaknesses and challenges.
Comfort Level: Discuss the comfort level within the team. Do team members feel safe expressing their ideas and opinions? Are there any barriers to open communication that need to be addressed?
Collaboration: Evaluate how well team members are collaborating and whether they are effectively leveraging each other’s strengths. Explore opportunities for better synergy and coordination.
Safe Space: Ensure that the retrospective is conducted in a safe and non-judgmental environment. Team members should feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and concerns without fear of reprisal.
In one of my previous articles, I spoke about two other types of Retrospective — Open and Topic Specific Retrospective
Sugar & Salt Retrospective
The concept of using the Sugar and Salt analogy for feedback is both creative and effective. It provides a framework for team members to deliver feedback that is both positive and constructive, emphasising the importance of balance and the unique value of each type of feedback.
This is a non-sprint related retrospective that focuses on the team.
Facilitation
Using two paper cups, one labeled “Sugar” and the other labeled “Salt” for each individual is a simple and tangible way to represent the concept of positive and constructive feedback. The symbolism of these labels makes it easy for team members to understand the purpose of each cup and encourages them to provide feedback in a balanced manner.
The “Sugar” cup represents positive feedback, which is the sweetness of recognition and appreciation. When someone does something well or goes above and beyond, their achievements can be acknowledged by placing feedback notes in the Sugar Cup. This not only boosts morale but also reinforces the positive behaviors and contributions that the team values.
The “Salt” cup represents constructive feedback, which is the seasoning that enhances growth and improvement. When there are areas for improvement or behaviors that need adjustment, team members can provide feedback in the Salt Cup. This feedback is meant to help individuals identify opportunities for development and make necessary changes.
Encourage team members to write both “Sugar” (positive) and “Salt” (constructive) feedback for each individual on their team. Encourage them to be specific and clear in their feedback, focusing on behaviors and actions rather than personal traits. After the designated time, instruct team members to place their feedback cutouts in the appropriate cups (Sugar or Salt) for each team member.
Begin the feedback sharing session by inviting team members to share the positive “Sugar” feedback they received. Give team members the option to share the constructive “Salt” feedback they received. Again, stress that this is entirely voluntary, and individuals should only share if they feel comfortable doing so. Team members can also choose to share constructive feedback before sharing positive feedback and closing on a sweet note.
Share examples and elaborate on how the improvement feedback should focus on what is expected and why. Focus on what is expected rather than highlighting what is missing. It also tries to justify the expectation and explain how it can be helpful.
Let us make giving feedback easy, think about what you have to say now try to eliminate the negative words focus on what kind of behaviour you expected instead. Think of a solid example and try to bridge the actual behaviour & the expected behaviour with zip line of a constructive feedback. If required start by writing it down.Example: You miss adding comments to the Jira ticket, instead try to say: Updates in form of ticket comment might help the team to see how you are progressing also ensures that team members can pick up the ticket mid-way if they have the knowledge, time, and capacity to do so. This way of we also boost async communication.
My experience facilitating the Retrospective:
The team was excited about the Sugar and Salt cups, and there was some active engagement between the team members. This activity promoted movements and connections. It focuses on providing valuable feedback.
The fun part was writing two pieces of feedback (Sugar and Salt) per team member and making sure to put them in the right person's right cup (Sugar or Salt). The team not only got better at giving feedback, but they also secretly learned the skill of organising and sharing it with each other.
For example, write <team member name> and Sa (for salt) or Su (for Sugar) on one of the corners of the paper cutout so you don’t mix up. It was fun to watch how the team members interacted with each other during the time spent writing feedback. One of them even got up and took a place by the corner, as he said he could not think clearly or focus with people talking around him. The team showed empathy and decided to lower these discussions to help him stay focused. These are non-verbal queues for a Facilitator to see how the team learns and make an effort to create a safe space for each of them.
What can the team members do with this feedback?
There are multiple benefits to receiving feedback. Positive feedback encourages an individual to continue doing the right thing and boosts morale. Whereas constructive feedback can help identify areas for improvement. It can also be included in your growth plan or discussions with Managers. Of course, you have the option to completely ignore the feedback and continue as is. What an individual can do with the feedback she or he receives is a personal choice. I can write a separate article on the power of feedback, but let's park it for some other time.
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