Run a Project Retrospective
Operations · 2–3 hours · Beginner
The job
Facilitate a structured retrospective that produces genuine learning and specific improvement actions, not just a box-ticking exercise.
What the sponsor gets
Each canvas and map from this playbook — Retrospective Canvas, Prioritisation Matrix — exports as a PDF, or as PowerPoint on Pro, straight from the session, and the whole run exports as one PowerPoint for the sponsor. Nothing is redrawn.
The method
Gather individual reflections
Send a brief pre-work form 48 hours before the session. Ask: what went well, what was frustrating, and what would you do differently? Individual reflection prevents groupthink.
Tip: Make responses anonymous if the team isn't yet comfortable with open feedback.
Set the stage
Open the session by reviewing the project timeline, key milestones, and outcomes. Agree on ground rules: no blame, no defensiveness, focus on systems not people.
Tip: Start with "what went well" — it builds psychological safety before you get to the hard stuff.
Facilitate the retrospective
Create a Retrospective canvas and work through each section as a group. Capture themes, not just individual observations.
Tip: Use dot-voting to prioritise which themes to discuss in depth — you can't action everything.
Prioritise improvement actions
Move the top themes from the retrospective into a Prioritisation Matrix. Plot by impact and effort to identify the 2–3 actions most worth pursuing.
Tip: "We should communicate better" is not an action. "We will hold a 15-minute standup every Monday at 10am" is.
Assign owners and deadlines
Every improvement action needs a single owner and a specific deadline. Actions without owners don't happen.
Tip: Limit to 3 actions maximum — more than that and nothing gets done.
Schedule the follow-up
Book a 30-minute check-in 4 weeks later to review whether the actions were implemented and whether they had the intended effect.
Tip: The follow-up is what separates retrospectives that drive change from retrospectives that are just therapy.
The canvases and maps
- Retrospective Canvas
- What went well and what to improve, then start, stop and continue, so reflection ends in actions rather than a list of complaints.
- Prioritisation Matrix
- Impact against effort in four quadrants — quick wins, major projects, fill-ins and avoid — so the team trades off instead of calling everything a priority.
What it doesn't do
It doesn't run the room for you or decide for the client. The steps, canvases and duration are a starting point you adapt; the judgement stays yours.