7 fun retrospective questions to make your team laugh
If you are part of an agile team, it is essential to conduct regular retrospectives in order to continuously improve team performance.
But who says that retrospectives can’t be fun? - That’s exactly why in this article I want to introduce you to our 7 most fun retrospectives that are guaranteed to put a smile on your team’s face.
Fun Retrospective Questions 1
1. The Sailboat Retrospective ⛵️
The Sailboat Retro is a retrospective known for its pictorial retrospective questions.
So get ready and weigh anchor:
Sailboat Retro ⛵️: How the retro works
-
Random Icebreaker (2-5 minutes)
Echometer provides you with a generator for random check-in questions.
-
Review of open actions (2-5 minutes)
Before starting with new topics, you should talk about what has become of the measures from past retrospectives to check their effectiveness. Echometer automatically lists all open action items from past retros.
-
Discuss retro topics
Use the following open questions to collect your most important findings. First, everyone does it themselves, covered. Echometer allows you to reveal each column of the retro board individually in order to then present and group the feedback.
- ⚓️ Your anchor: What holds us back?
- 🦈🧊 Your shark/iceberg: Which dangers or obstacles approach us?
- 💨 Your tailwind: What drives us forward?
- 🏝💰 Your paradise: What achievement or milestones are we working towards?
-
Catch-all question (Recommended)
So that other topics also have a place:
- What else would you like to talk about in the retro?
-
Prioritization / Voting (5 minutes)
On the retro board in Echometer, you can easily prioritize the feedback with voting. The voting is of course anonymous.
-
Define actions (10-20 minutes)
You can create a linked action via the plus symbol on a feedback. Not sure which measure would be the right one? Then open a whiteboard on the topic via the plus symbol instead to brainstorm root causes and possible measures.
-
Checkout / Closing (5 minutes)
Echometer enables you to collect anonymous feedback from the team on how helpful the retro was. This creates the ROTI score ("Return On Time Invested"), which you can track over time.
Sailboat Retro ⛵️
Fun Retrospective Questions 2
2. You want something to laugh about? The Meme Retro
Now it’s getting really funny with the familiar meme faces. In this retrospective, we have assigned funny retrospective questions to the well-known meme faces to look back on the last sprint:
Pacman Retro 🟡: How the retro works
-
Random Icebreaker (2-5 minutes)
Echometer provides you with a generator for random check-in questions.
-
Review of open actions (2-5 minutes)
Before starting with new topics, you should talk about what has become of the measures from past retrospectives to check their effectiveness. Echometer automatically lists all open action items from past retros.
-
Discuss retro topics
Use the following open questions to collect your most important findings. First, everyone does it themselves, covered. Echometer allows you to reveal each column of the retro board individually in order to then present and group the feedback.
- Me Gusta: What did you like about the last sprint?
- 4 Real: When did you feel really pranked in the last sprint?
- I am watching you: What will you be on the lookout for in the future?
-
Catch-all question (Recommended)
So that other topics also have a place:
- What else would you like to talk about in the retro?
-
Prioritization / Voting (5 minutes)
On the retro board in Echometer, you can easily prioritize the feedback with voting. The voting is of course anonymous.
-
Define actions (10-20 minutes)
You can create a linked action via the plus symbol on a feedback. Not sure which measure would be the right one? Then open a whiteboard on the topic via the plus symbol instead to brainstorm root causes and possible measures.
-
Checkout / Closing (5 minutes)
Echometer enables you to collect anonymous feedback from the team on how helpful the retro was. This creates the ROTI score ("Return On Time Invested"), which you can track over time.
Pacman Retro 🟡
Fun Retrospective Questions 3
3. Not satisfied with the speed in the team? The Mario Kart Retro 🚗
Mario Kart is as unpredictable as today’s work. You never know when a banana skin will be thrown, but you can mentally prepare for it. This time it works both as a “futurespective” and a retrospective.
Have fun with the retrospective questions based on the classic:
Mario Kart Retro 🚗: How the retro works
-
Random Icebreaker (2-5 minutes)
Echometer provides you with a generator for random check-in questions.
-
Review of open actions (2-5 minutes)
Before starting with new topics, you should talk about what has become of the measures from past retrospectives to check their effectiveness. Echometer automatically lists all open action items from past retros.
-
Discuss retro topics
Use the following open questions to collect your most important findings. First, everyone does it themselves, covered. Echometer allows you to reveal each column of the retro board individually in order to then present and group the feedback.
- What bananas on the track do we have to look out for?
- What’s an upcoming shortcut we could take advantage of?
- What powerup could we pick up to ensure our win?
- What shortcuts helped us win?
- Which bananas did we slip on?
- What was the powerup that gave us an edge?
-
Catch-all question (Recommended)
So that other topics also have a place:
- What else would you like to talk about in the retro?
-
Prioritization / Voting (5 minutes)
On the retro board in Echometer, you can easily prioritize the feedback with voting. The voting is of course anonymous.
-
Define actions (10-20 minutes)
You can create a linked action via the plus symbol on a feedback. Not sure which measure would be the right one? Then open a whiteboard on the topic via the plus symbol instead to brainstorm root causes and possible measures.
-
Checkout / Closing (5 minutes)
Echometer enables you to collect anonymous feedback from the team on how helpful the retro was. This creates the ROTI score ("Return On Time Invested"), which you can track over time.
Mario Kart Retro 🚗
Fun Retrospective Questions 4
4. Work feels like being in the theater? The Theater Retro 🎭
Sometimes work is like theater. There is so much drama! People play a role instead of being themselves. Let’s look at our work from the perspective of theater:
Theater Retro: How the retro works
-
Random Icebreaker (2-5 minutes)
Echometer provides you with a generator for random check-in questions.
-
Review of open actions (2-5 minutes)
Before starting with new topics, you should talk about what has become of the measures from past retrospectives to check their effectiveness. Echometer automatically lists all open action items from past retros.
-
Discuss retro topics
Use the following open questions to collect your most important findings. First, everyone does it themselves, covered. Echometer allows you to reveal each column of the retro board individually in order to then present and group the feedback.
- Who was the (tragic?) hero in the last sprint and why?
- At which point of the storyline did you get lost?
- In which situation did you have stage fright?
- Where would a prompter have been helpful?
- Which role would you like to play in the future?
-
Catch-all question (Recommended)
So that other topics also have a place:
- What else would you like to talk about in the retro?
-
Prioritization / Voting (5 minutes)
On the retro board in Echometer, you can easily prioritize the feedback with voting. The voting is of course anonymous.
-
Define actions (10-20 minutes)
You can create a linked action via the plus symbol on a feedback. Not sure which measure would be the right one? Then open a whiteboard on the topic via the plus symbol instead to brainstorm root causes and possible measures.
-
Checkout / Closing (5 minutes)
Echometer enables you to collect anonymous feedback from the team on how helpful the retro was. This creates the ROTI score ("Return On Time Invested"), which you can track over time.
Theater Retro
Fun Retrospective Questions 5
5. Need to start again? The Escape Room Retro 🕵🏼
Escape rooms have just the right balance of “pressure” and “fun”, like a good retrospective. If the team feels like they’re stuck somehow, it’s worth trying to break out of their own situation. Have fun with the retrospective questions of the escape game.
Escape Room Retro: How the retro works
-
Random Icebreaker (2-5 minutes)
Echometer provides you with a generator for random check-in questions.
-
Review of open actions (2-5 minutes)
Before starting with new topics, you should talk about what has become of the measures from past retrospectives to check their effectiveness. Echometer automatically lists all open action items from past retros.
-
Discuss retro topics
Use the following open questions to collect your most important findings. First, everyone does it themselves, covered. Echometer allows you to reveal each column of the retro board individually in order to then present and group the feedback.
- What puzzles do we still have to solve?
- Where are we running out of time?
- Where could communication in the team have been better?
- Which challenge did we master pretty well?
-
Catch-all question (Recommended)
So that other topics also have a place:
- What else would you like to talk about in the retro?
-
Prioritization / Voting (5 minutes)
On the retro board in Echometer, you can easily prioritize the feedback with voting. The voting is of course anonymous.
-
Define actions (10-20 minutes)
You can create a linked action via the plus symbol on a feedback. Not sure which measure would be the right one? Then open a whiteboard on the topic via the plus symbol instead to brainstorm root causes and possible measures.
-
Checkout / Closing (5 minutes)
Echometer enables you to collect anonymous feedback from the team on how helpful the retro was. This creates the ROTI score ("Return On Time Invested"), which you can track over time.
Escape Room Retro
Fun Retrospective Questions 6
6. Alien Invasion Retrospective 👽
Now it’s getting crazy… What would you do in an alien invasion? Presumably this will never come, but it is almost certain that other unforeseen things will happen. With these fun retrospective questions, you can prepare your team to be top-notch.
Alien-Invasion Retrospective: How the retro works
-
Random Icebreaker (2-5 minutes)
Echometer provides you with a generator for random check-in questions.
-
Review of open actions (2-5 minutes)
Before starting with new topics, you should talk about what has become of the measures from past retrospectives to check their effectiveness. Echometer automatically lists all open action items from past retros.
-
Discuss retro topics
Use the following open questions to collect your most important findings. First, everyone does it themselves, covered. Echometer allows you to reveal each column of the retro board individually in order to then present and group the feedback.
- New species: what things have you encountered that you didn't expect?
- Alien-Tech: What took your work to new heights this week?
- Armageddon: Where have you seen your work go down?
-
Catch-all question (Recommended)
So that other topics also have a place:
- What else would you like to talk about in the retro?
-
Prioritization / Voting (5 minutes)
On the retro board in Echometer, you can easily prioritize the feedback with voting. The voting is of course anonymous.
-
Define actions (10-20 minutes)
You can create a linked action via the plus symbol on a feedback. Not sure which measure would be the right one? Then open a whiteboard on the topic via the plus symbol instead to brainstorm root causes and possible measures.
-
Checkout / Closing (5 minutes)
Echometer enables you to collect anonymous feedback from the team on how helpful the retro was. This creates the ROTI score ("Return On Time Invested"), which you can track over time.
Alien-Invasion Retrospective
Fun Retrospective Questions 7
7. Drum roll… The Circus Retrospective 🤡
Clear the ring for the fun retro, which also takes place in a tent:
Circus Retrospective: How the retro works
-
Random Icebreaker (2-5 minutes)
Echometer provides you with a generator for random check-in questions.
-
Review of open actions (2-5 minutes)
Before starting with new topics, you should talk about what has become of the measures from past retrospectives to check their effectiveness. Echometer automatically lists all open action items from past retros.
-
Discuss retro topics
Use the following open questions to collect your most important findings. First, everyone does it themselves, covered. Echometer allows you to reveal each column of the retro board individually in order to then present and group the feedback.
- Juggler: What tasks did you have to juggle that made you sweat?
- Acrobat: What helped you to align yourself more flexibly?
- Magician: What would you most like to conjure up that has been missing so far?
-
Catch-all question (Recommended)
So that other topics also have a place:
- What else would you like to talk about in the retro?
-
Prioritization / Voting (5 minutes)
On the retro board in Echometer, you can easily prioritize the feedback with voting. The voting is of course anonymous.
-
Define actions (10-20 minutes)
You can create a linked action via the plus symbol on a feedback. Not sure which measure would be the right one? Then open a whiteboard on the topic via the plus symbol instead to brainstorm root causes and possible measures.
-
Checkout / Closing (5 minutes)
Echometer enables you to collect anonymous feedback from the team on how helpful the retro was. This creates the ROTI score ("Return On Time Invested"), which you can track over time.
Circus Retrospective
Fun Retrospective Templates: Conclusion
We hope you’ll try some of the retrospective templates mentioned for agile teams. I guess it always depends on the agile maturity level and retro fatigue which methods are most suitable.
Retrospective Templates: Some Final Notes
If you have any more retrospective examples or ideas for an agile retrospective template or would like to give us feedback… - just write to us.
And if you’re looking for a free online retro board software for retrospectives, you may have seen that Echometer is just that. Have fun trying out the different retro templates in our tool 😄
"Many team members are afraid to speak up!"
Solve this challenge
"We discover too many unexpected issues & bugs at a late stage!"
Solve this challenge
"Why does it sometimes take me hours to prepare a simple retrospective?"
Solve this challenge
