Agile Teams are sometimes faced with the question: Should the product manager moderate the retrospective? If so, what needs to be considered in such a situation? As a trained psychologist and Scrum Master, I will give you a few tips today to help you master your situation.
Product Manager Retrospective
The retrospective as a product manager: key tips
In a situation where there is no dedicated scrum master and the product manager has to facilitate the agile retrospective, there are some considerations to take into account. Here are specific tips for this situation:
Clarify the role:
- Explain at the beginning of the retrospective that you, as Product Manager, are taking on the role of moderator, but are not acting as a formal Scrum Master. Emphasize that the goal is to discuss constructive feedback and hold an open discussion. Possibly openly discuss possible risks and obstacles that could arise from the lack of a Scrum Master role in order to sensitize the team.
Respect team autonomy:
- Show respect for the team's autonomy. Let them know that you are there as a facilitator to support the process, but that the decisions and actions will ultimately be made together.
Focus on the retrospective:
- During the retrospective, concentrate fully on the moderation and try to comment less from the product manager's perspective. If you do, actively announce this if necessary: "Now I'm going to leave my role as moderator and slip into the role of product manager: I understand your criticism of our product vision. Perhaps we should record a measure for this right away."
Take on an active listening role:
- Just like in any other retro, but maybe you're less aware of it: actively listen and involve team members in the discussion, especially now that you're breaking out of your product manager role. Make sure everyone has the opportunity to express their thoughts and encourage open and honest communication.
Flexibility in the choice of methods:
- Be flexible in your choice of retrospective methods. Consider the preferences and dynamics of the team to create an effective and engaging session. For example, here are 50 interactive and fun retrospective methods that you are sure to enjoy: 50 retrospective ideas for beginners and professionals.
Promote team empowerment:
- Encourage the team to take responsibility and propose solutions to identified problems. This strengthens the empowerment of the team members and promotes self-organization – something you should probably always do in the Product Manager role.
Product Manager Retrospective
More in-depth tips
Promote skills development:
- Allow the team to develop their own 'facilitation skills' over time. This could mean that one team member gradually takes over the facilitation or that the role rotates. In my experience, in a very mature team, there is a very balanced speaking time and facilitation is – hardly necessary, especially if there is a good, structured retro tool –.
Use visualization:
- As a product manager, use visual aids such as whiteboards or digital tools to structure the discussion and record the results. This helps to increase transparency and better understand jointly developed solutions.
Track progress:
- If you have to moderate several retrospectives: record which measures were derived from previous retrospectives and track how successfully they were implemented. This shows the team that their efforts are bearing fruit. Agile retrospective tools such as Echometer can also help you with this topic.
Draw attention to the positive:
- In addition to identifying areas for improvement, it is also important to recognize the positive aspects and successes. This helps to keep the team motivated. So, the question "What has gone well recently?" should not be left out as a product manager, even if it may seem tempting at times.
Include external perspectives:
- Occasionally, external perspectives, such as the involvement of stakeholders or experts, can provide valuable insights and help to identify blind spots in the team.
Maintain documentation:
- Keep a record of the results and discussions of the retrospectives, especially as a product manager, so that they can still be understood later. This enables the team to track progress over time.
Agile Use Health Checks:
- Agile Health Checks, for example via surveys, can be a great way to get feedback from the team in a neutral way without influencing the team via questions. Echometer, for example, can help you with this retrospective form with the help of some templates.
Product Manager Retrospective
Tool for teams without a full-time Scrum Master
As you may have already noticed, many of the aspects mentioned here can be taken over or at least supported by a good retrospective tool. The retrospective and team development tool Echometer, for example, is specially designed for cases where your team does not have a dedicated full-time Scrum Master.
Echometer is a digital tool that helps agile team leads with agile retrospectives and team Health Checks. Whether remote, hybrid or on-site: it makes team coaching measurable and professionalizes your work while saving you a lot of work. Just take a look at our website to find out more: www.echometerapp.com.
"Retros can be extremely powerful - if you manage to talk about the elephant in the room. Good tools can help you do this very well!"
Product Manager Retrospective
Conclusion - Product Manager Retrospective
Finally, another quick hint: If you would like to know how it feels to develop your team with our tool: You can start an agile retrospective below without logging in, in this case the "Keep, Stop, Start" workshop.
Alternatively, simply forward our website to the responsible colleagues: www.echometerapp.com.
