Purpose of the Sprint Retrospective Meeting

The Scrum framework has been adopted by many organizations in recent times due to its faster delivery and less manpower used. It is an Agile framework used in various industries where a team of people works iteratively on projects to deliver products at a faster rate.

The completion of each iteration in Scrum is called Sprint. The Scrum team conducts a daily Scrum meeting of 15 minutes where they discuss each important detail of the project like its growth, risks involved, and ways to clear the backlog. After the completion of each Sprint, there is a team meeting known as the Sprint Retrospective meeting.

The purpose of the Sprint Retrospective meeting is to discuss things like what was smooth about the last Sprint, what were the problems faced in this Sprint, and how those problems were solved. The Sprint Retrospective meeting is a crucial part of Scrum projects which is why it’s always done in between the completion of one Sprint and the start of another.

With each Sprint Retrospective meeting, the team gets to know about their growth with the recent Sprint, what is new or different in the next Sprint, and whether are there any added risks in the upcoming Sprint. Each of these meetings takes place for around 3 hours where the whole team discusses everything thoroughly.

Why Sprint Retrospective Meeting is Important for Every Scrum Project?

The basic purpose of the Sprint Retrospective meeting is for the Scrum team to discuss two things, what went well in the last Sprint and what didn’t so well. In each Sprint Retrospective meeting, every team member is asking the same two questions and the team is answering these with utmost honesty. The Scrum Master makes a report of the Sprint with their answers.

The job of a Scrum Master is to provide better ways for the Development Team to remove the obstructions in the project when they will be working on the upcoming Sprints. Every Scrum team needs to have a Sprint Retrospective meeting to understand the obstruction in previous Sprints and how can they be avoided in upcoming Sprints.

It involves the participation of each member of the team and the Scrum Master questions to the team to build a better product.

Numerous Things to Discuss in a Sprint Retrospective Meeting:

There are several things a Scrum team usually discusses in a Sprint meeting. All of those things are briefly followed below:

Improvement in Daily Scrums

As you already know daily Scrums are the daily 15-minute meetings within a Sprint. A discussion about improving the daily Scrum meeting is usually put in front of the team. Here improvement means a proper flow of information about the daily work done in the Sprint. Every individual provided the correct report of the work he did that day and whether were there any problems faced in that work.

Also, Check Out:The purpose of daily scrum meeting 

Is There a Change Needed

The team should always be discussing the space for change in their way of operating whenever a loophole is detected by a member in the functioning of the Sprint. Are there any rules in the Sprint operations that need to be updated or changed for the nature of the current Sprint? And if there is enough evidence in favor of the change then the required change should be made.

Maintenance of Backlog 

Another purpose of a Retrospective meeting is the discussion of the backlog. There should always be additions, deletions, and changes made to the Product Backlog of the Scrum project. Every addition in the Product Backlog should be kept higher on the priority and needs to be dealt with first in the next Sprint. A backlog that has been cleared in the last Sprint should be removed from the report.

Constant changes in the backlog report should be made to set priority to on more important backlog and the less important ones can be shifted down to later Sprints. These additions, deletions, or changes can be made by discussing them with each individual of the team. Majorly these additions can be the items or tasks that were supposed to be done in the last Sprint but weren’t able to be completed. So keeping these a priority is a must.

Not maintaining backlog can be very harmful to the overall Scrum project and that is why in every Retrospective meeting Product Backlog should be discussed and possible additions and deletions should be made. Piling up of backlog is quite dangerous for the project and it can become exhausting for the team to cover up the excessive backlog. An excessive Product Backlog can cause a delay in the project and can affect the overall project.

A properly maintained Product Backlog will help the project function smoothly and it also provides efficiency to the project. With each completed Sprint if the backlog report gets better then there’s a chance that the project can be completed before the timeframe allotted to that particular Scrum project. All these points clearly show the importance of maintaining a Product Backlog and discussing it in every Sprint Retrospective meeting.

Attendance & Participation is Very Crucial

Each Sprint Retrospective meeting is supposed to be joined by every team member. As you already know these meetings take place to discuss every individual’s work and other important elements of the project. So it is mandatory for every person associated with the project should be present in every retrospective meeting. Everyone’s presence and everyone’s participation in each meeting are valuable.

It is not just about being present in the meeting but it’s more about an active participant in the meeting. Any Sprint Retrospective purpose is to bring the whole team together and collaborate on solving problems and moving forward together. That is why each member of the team should participate in the meeting in the best manner.

Each of them should actively present their views and ideas in front of the team to counter any problem or to help speed up the rate of the project. The collective effort of the whole team always helps in the faster growth of the project. Active participation from each individual will make the other members of the team understand better and how they like things to be.

It also helps the Scrum Master to analyze the skills and abilities of each member of his team and it makes it easy for him to decide whom he should reach out for specific work of the project. Out of all the purposes of a Sprint Retrospective meeting, attendance and participation should always be kept on top of the list. Because without the complete team and its participation rest of the important functions and purposes of the meeting are useless.

Setting a Roadmap for the Next Sprint

A Sprint Retrospective meeting is the best place to design a roadmap for the next Sprint. This meeting is a place where every individual of the team is present and with collaboration and collective inputs, an ideal roadmap for the next Sprint can easily be created. With the creation of an ideal roadmap, it becomes easy for every member to understand their duties and know each step of the Sprint.

A roadmap is a tool that makes the whole Sprint move in proportion and there’s no imbalance in the distribution of work. Each individual makes the same amount of effort. It synchronizes the whole Sprint and gives a comfortable and stress-free environment to the team.

Final Verdict

Whatever is said in this piece about the purpose of a Sprint Retrospective meeting, holds value. Following and practicing all the given points in every Sprint Retrospective enhances the quality of the work and provides continuous growth to the project. By keeping all of the given advice in mind a Scrum team will have a more adequate workflow and can avoid major setbacks or risks involved with the project.
Defining and announcing the purpose of the Sprint Retrospective meeting beforehand is crucial for a productive session and helps each member get the doubts clear regarding the next Sprint or the whole project. Simpliaxis offers courses Certified ScrumMaster® (CSM) and Advanced Certified ScrumMaster® (A-CSM) where Sprint Retrospective is a key ceremony in the Scrum framework. These courses provide you with the tools and techniques to conduct effective retrospectives, ensuring your team continually improves and delivers high-quality results.