seng403 full set - university of calgary in...

SENG%403%–%Software%Development%in%Teams%&%Organizations

RetrospectivesSoftware%Development%in%Teams%&%Organizations

321 SENG%403%–%Software%Development%in%Teams%&%Organizations

Retrospective A%special%meeting%held%at%the%end%of%a%milestone%to%learn%from%the%previous%experience%and%find%ways%to%improve%future%efforts.

Needed%because%we%realize%that: No%process%is%perfect.% Every%team%is%unique. Circumstances%change.

©%James%Shore%2008.%%For%more,%visit%http://jamesshore.com/AgileVBook/

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Types%of%Retrospectives

Retrospectives%are%held%at%crucial%milestones: Iteration%retrospective%(most%common). Release%retrospective. Project%retrospective. Surprise%retrospective.

The%bigger%the%milestone%is,%the%longer%and%more%intensive%the%retro%is.

The%more%retrospectives,%the%better.%Really?



Facilitating%Retrospectives

Anybody%can%facilitate%a%retro. Sometimes,%an%external%facilitator%is%better.%When? The%role%should%rotate%amongst%members.

Everybody%on%the%team%should%participate%in%each%retro.%

NonVteam%members%should%not%attend. Retros%should%be%timeVboxed%to%one%hour.% Your%first%few%retros%will%probably%run%long.%


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First%Things%First%–%Prime%Directive Team%members%should%all%have%a%shared%understanding%and%expectation.

•At%the%end%of%a%project%everyone%knows%so%much%more.%Naturally%we%will%discover%decisions%and%actions%we%wish%we%could%do%over.%

•This%is%wisdom%to%be%celebrated,%not%judgment%used%to%embarrass.%

•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's,Prime,Directive)

http://www.slideshare.net/ganis/creatingVeffectiveVteamsVfinalVv4


Brainstorming Hand%out%index%cards%and%pencils,%then%write%the%following%headings%on%the%whiteboard: A%richer%pool:%Enjoyable,%Frustrating,%Puzzling,%Same,%More,%Less.

A%simpler%version:%Things%we%have%done%well,%Things%we%need%to%improve.%

Everyone%writes%their%ideas%on%index%cards. Everyone%sticks%the%cards%up%on%the%board%under%their%headings.%


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Sample%Outcome

http://fabiopereira.me/blog/wpVcontent/uploads/2008/11/walldc93a7f3V2d9dV4525V8301Vd40ad993e66f.jpg


Mute%Affinity%Mapping

Affinity%Mapping:%a%way%to%sort%large%amounts%of%data%into%logical%groups.

Everyone%comes%out%to%the%whiteboard. Put%related%cards%close%together. Put%unrelated%cards%far%apart. No%talking%(Mute).


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http://www.cornetdesign.com/images/AgileRetrospectives_134B2/IMG_0016.jpg



Draw%a%circle%around%each%group,%each%representing%a%category.%

Read%a%sampling%of%cards%from%each%circle%and%ask%the%team%to%name%the%category.

Vote%on%which%categories%to%improve%during%the%next%iteration.% Give%each%person%five%votes.% Put%a%dot%next%to%the%group%you%want%to%vote%for. Participants%can%put%all%their%votes%on%one%category,%or%spread%their%votes.

One%category%should%win.%Discard%all%other%cards.


330


Generating%Action%Items

Apply%rootVcause%analysis%on%the%identified%problems.%

Brainstorm%some%ideas%for%improvement. When%you%have%several%ideas,%ask%the%group%to%vote%on%the%best%one.

Make%sure%someone%is%responsible%for%following%through%on%the%action%items.



Sample%Outcome

http://fabiopereira.me/blog/wpVcontent/uploads/2008/11/walldc93a7f3V2d9dV4525V8301Vd40ad993e66f.jpg

332


A%Practical%Guide

333©%James%Shore%2008.%%For%more,%visit%http://jamesshore.com/AgileVBook/


Remarks

Retros%should%not%be%too%short,%but%should%not%be%too%long%either.%

Retros%are%not%the%place%for%individual%performance%feedback.

Retros%are%not%the%place%to%solve%technical%issues,%or%discuss%individual%skills.

Retros%are%not%the%place%to%correct%faulty%mental%models%of%software%development.

Agile%Retrospectives:%Making%Good%Teams%Great%by%E.%Derby%&%D.%Larsenhttp://www.slideshare.net/estherderby/agileVretrospectivesV4976896

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