Identify process improvements in the sprint retro
10 min
By the end of this lesson, you’ll be able to:
- Recognize that the sprint retrospective is time-boxed and typically relative to sprint length
- Emphasize the importance of identifying and agreeing on a measurable process improvement (kaizen) for a future sprint
- Describe how the scrum team reflects on successes, challenges, and problem-solving during the retrospective to ensure continuous improvement
What is the sprint retrospective?
A sprint retrospective is a dedicated meeting held at the end of each sprint. It is the final event in the sprint cycle and a chance for the scrum team to reflect on how they worked together, celebrate successes, and identify opportunities for improvement.
👇The sprint retrospective gives the scrum team a chance to reflect on the sprint.
Time-boxing the retrospective
The sprint retrospective is time-boxed to a maximum of three hours for a one-month sprint. For shorter sprints, the event is usually shorter. For example a two-week sprint team would typically have a retrospective lasting no longer than 90 minutes.
Get started with the sprint retrospective
The scrum team inspects how the last sprint went with regards to individuals, interactions, processes, tools, and accomplishing the sprint goal. The scrum team discusses what went well during the sprint, what problems they encountered, and how those problems were (or were not) solved. This should enable the team to identify the most helpful changes to improve effectiveness in the future.
👇Click the tabs below to learn about the three key reflection points in the retrospective.
Ask the following questions:
- What went well?
- Which practices should we continue?
👉 For example: A team might say,“We completed our sprint goal ahead of schedule.”
Teams should address the improvements they identified as having the most potential impact as soon as possible. They should add at least one actionable improvement experiment to be included in the next sprint.
Introduce measurable process improvements
The heart of the retrospective is kaizen, a Japanese word meaning “continuous improvement.” Each retrospective should end with the team agreeing on at least one measurable process improvement for the next sprint. This improvement should be specific, actionable, and easy to track.
Let’s take a look at some process improvements suggested by the Acme Inc. team at their last retro. Can you determine if the improvement is specific, actionable, and easy to track?
👉 Example 1: “We should improve our code reviews.”
👉 Example 2: “In the next sprint, every pull request must receive at least two peer reviews before merging. We will track the number of reviews per pull request in our repository and discuss the results at the next retrospective.”
Take action with the sprint retrospective
The sprint retrospective is a continuous cycle that celebrates successes and enables improvements. Let’s explore a scenario to learn more.
SofaYou is a furniture manufacturer. The operations team has just completed a two-week sprint focused on improving the assembly process for a new line of arm chairs. The team is now gathering for their sprint retrospective. The operations team is composed of a scrum master (Linda), a product owner (Ben) two assembly line workers (Carlos and Mei), a quality control specialist (Raj), and a logistics coordinator (Sarah).
👇Click the numbered icons below to explore the SofaYou sprint retrospective.
1
2
3
4
5
Earn your Registered Scrum Basics™ (RSB) credential
Once you've completed all courses in the learning path, you can earn your official Registered Scrum Basics™ (RSB) credential directly from Scrum Inc. through ScrumLab. Here’s how to do it:
- Complete all of the courses in the Registered Scrum Basics learning path. Don't forget to complete the quiz at the end of this lesson!
- If you're new to ScrumLab:
- Enter your details on the signup page, then select signup.
- If you already have a ScrumLab account:
- Log into your account.
- From your dashboard, select + Add course or team with code.
- Enter IE-RSB-2025-04-25, then select Add.
- Select start below the Registered Scrum Basics exam.
