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Christian Heidemeyer

Scrum retrospective method: 200% more successful through psychology

Lieutenant John Kelly concentrated. He was the leader of a team of 5 lieutenants in the US Navy who had only one task: to determine as quickly as possible whether surrounding warships were more peaceful or hostile to them. Time was running. 

But Lt. Kelly was relaxed because he had learned something in a two-hour training session beforehand. A Scrum retrospective method that led his group to achieve an excellent result. 

Don't worry: what he learned can be used not only in the military, but also in your team. Because it became specific for teams in our VUCA World developed.

Before we go any further, a short recommendation: If you want to take your retros to a new level in just a few clicks, then click on the following link and take a look at our retro tool Echometer.

A Scrum retrospective method from science

The task described Lt. Kellys was the final part of a team method training in overseas warfare. It prepared the participants for their assignment as head of a NAVY ship.

13 teams participated in the team training. These were again part of a scientific experiment (Smith-Jentsch, Cannon-Bowers, Tannenbaum & Salas, 2008). Before the task, they were randomly divided into an experimental group (7 teams) and a control group (6 teams). 

The control group was prepared for the task in the classic way. And the test group received a slightly modified training (1).

This slightly modified training resulted in the test group acting like professionals among beginners compared to the control group. So show the performance results at one Scale from 1 (bad) to 5 (good). 

What kind of training leads to such a difference?

2,17

Average performance in the control group

4,57

Average value of the performance in the test group

The power of a good Scrum retrospective

There was one variable, one difference in the method being trained. This distinguished the experimental group from the control group. To understand this difference, let's take a look at the entire training.

In preparation for the above task, both groups performed two exercises. Following these exercises, both groups reflected on it.

Specifically, about what went well and what went bad during these exercises. To improve their teamwork (Smith-Jentsch, Cannon-Bowers, Tannenbaum & Salas, 2008).

This subsequent reflection also has other names in science: “Team debrief”, “After Action Review” or “Team guided self-correction” (Salas, Nichols & Driskell, 2007)…

… Or synonymously in the practice of agile work “retrospective” (the conclusion of the sprint according to Scrum).

Both the control and the experimental group therefore carried out a retrospective. However, these retrospectives were conducted very differently in the two groups.

The control group practically carried out a classic retrospective. However, the experimental group did a retrospective with a slightly different method. Let's call this type of method nitro-retro.

That brings us to the difference between the two groups. The key variable, the secret ingredient, the magic word within the nitro retro is called the team's “shared mental model”.

This is exactly what you have to work on as an agile coach, scrum master and product owner. Or rather, this is what makes good agile coaching and agile team development. And it doesn't matter whether you work according to Lean startup or in Safe framework is working.

When Scrum Retrospectives Work - The Secret Method

What is a mental model? The theory behind it, based on knowledge from cognitive science, social psychology and anthropology: people perceive reality, external stimuli, through internal, cognitive “mental models” (also “frames” or schemes); Lee, Johnson, Lee, O'Connor & Khalil, 2004).

We have a mental model for everything. From “how do you behave in a Chinese restaurant” to “what makes good project management” to “how do you make toast”. 

Tom Wujec, for example, is the author of 4 bestsellers about creative thinking and design tools. He often starts training with an explanation of what mental models are. 

To do this, he asked the participants to do the following: Draw how toast is made. This creates drawings like the following. Three people with completely different mental models (for source):

Mental model 1
Mental model 2
Mental model 3

This is how people's mental examples of how to toast look like. Further examples and the Ted Talk can be found at www.drawtoast.com. 

Why is Tom Wujec doing this? What are mental models good for, or what does this have to do with successful retros and good teamwork?

First: Everyone also has a mental model for successful teamwork. Few people, let alone teams, are aware that they work according to a mental model for “team processes”. Even fewer people are aware that this mental model significantly controls our communication and behavior.

Secondly, and here's another crucial tip: teamwork works better, 

  • the more precisely a mental model hits reality and 

And exactly this knowledge can be used for successful, good retrospectives at the end of the last sprint. Let's get back to Lieutenant Kelly.

An exemplary mental model

Lieutenant Kelly had received training. This has given him the importance of mental models. He was also introduced to a mental model for successful teamwork in a military context. 

This model was supplemented by tips for its implementation - in the form of behavior anchors.2

It conveyed the “right” mental teamwork model. For the tasks that the teams performed during the training. 

And finally, Lieutenant Kelly was instructed and trained in it. In using this model as a basis for reflection for his team retrospectives.

The model consists of four dimensions with 11 behavioral anchors. It looks like this (see footnote for more info3):

  • information exchange
    • Find information from all available sources
    • Share information with the appropriate team members
    • Big Picture & #8216; Deploy updates
  • Communication:
    • use the correct terminology
    • Provide complete internal and external reports
    • Minimize unnecessary communication
    • clear and clearly audible communication
  • Supportive behavior (backup)
    • Correct mistakes of other team members
    • Support is actively requested and provided if necessary
  • Team initiative / leadership
    • Provide guidance and suggestions for mutual improvement
    • Identify clear priorities at team and individual levels

In the control group, the “classic” agile retrospectives took place like at the end of a scrum sprint. As a sequence, the events that took place during the exercise were discussed chronologically.4 

The general question was: what went well? And what could go better next time? 

Accordingly, tasks and topics were discussed in the order in which they appeared in the exercises. But continuous improvement is even better.

The basis for the magical Scrum retrospective method

The retrospectives of Lieutenant Kelly (quasi the group's Scrum Master) and the rest of the experimental group, on the other hand, had no chronological sequence. 

They were moderated or structured using the previously trained model. (Of course, this does not exclude that the classic five phases of a retro were not taken into account).

Here, conducive or less conducive behavior was reflected within the four dimensions. This has the two advantages described above, which hopefully all Scrum Masters will soon know:

  1. First, it didthat the team’s shared mental model of teamwork was aligned. Everyone had a very similar idea of how successful teamwork works. Imagine if a team member had been asked about the team training “Should you rather communicate as much as possible or try to avoid unnecessary communication? And are general big picture updates unnecessary or helpful? ”.
    Every team member would have had the same, unambiguous answer. The answer would probably not have been so clear before training.
  2. Second, this led to itthat everyone on the team wouldn't just give the same answer. But also the right one. The model was previously developed and validated across various studies.
    As a result, the team could be sure that the model reflects the behavior of an elite team relatively accurately (Mathieu, Heffner, Goodwin, Cannon-Bowers & Salas, 2005).


An example from the startup world

Another simple example: Ben Horowitz is the founder of Andreessen Horowitz, one of the most successful venture capitalists in the Silicon Valley. 

He noticed that the product owners in his first company Loudcloud performed very differently (Horowitz & Kenerly, 2014). So he wrote a simple leaflet. And that's what makes an excellent manager.

You could also say that he passed on his mental model for an “excellent manager”. Including the naming of specific behaviors. For example: “An excellent manager knows every competitor”. Or “An excellent manager has a 1: 1 with his team members every week”. 

This led to a significant increase in manager performance (Horowitz & Kenerly, 2014). With a simple tip, one Nudge, or an “alignment” of the mental model.

Equivalent matching of the mental model to the question “what makes good project management” should have similar effects in the corresponding environment. 

Likewise, a Kanban Board (another recommended method) leads to a comparison of the mental model with regard to existing tasks and their priority.

The following graphic (after Rudolph, Simon, Dufresne & Raemer, 2006) illustrates the mechanism of corresponding, good retrospectives again:

 

Mental models are invisible, but derivable. They are in the minds of team members and Scrum Masters. They influence the behavior or “actions” and the measures. The latter influences the results. Which have a retroactive influence on the perspective or the mental models of the team members.

Overall, team members know better about Nitro-Retro, what they can expect from each other and how they have to coordinate. 

An appropriate form of retros minimizes knowledge gaps and misunderstandings. Some conflicts are prevented. 

This is because people are really talking about the same thing. And obviously the cooperation is significantly improved (Smith-Jentsch, Cannon-Bowers, Tannenbaum & Salas, 2008). 

How does this knowledge benefit us in practice? So that it also has a positive impact on your releases or similar. Has?

How to Nitro-Retro - the Scrum Method as a workshop

Well, a little tip: If you do not generally do retrospectives (whether in Scrum Sprint format or by another method), then introduce them. Now. 

Because the results in the above study are no exception. (And don't worry - managers can also moderate retros).

A broad-based meta-study showed that retrospectives lead (or synonymously according to the scientific definition “team debriefs”) teams to 25% better performances. 

Even though teams only invested a very short 18 minutes in them (Tannenbaum & Cerasoli, 2013). 

Good retrospectives help one thing above all: gain insight. 

It is not without reason that "gaining insight" is one of the five phases of a retrospective in the Scrum methodology (or rather in the Scrum Framework).

Make good retrospectives even better

If you are agile coaches, scrum masters and product owners, you probably already live agile methods. And already did a retrospective in the last sprint.

Regardless of this, you can now improve future retrospectives based on the information explained. (In my view, this knowledge should actually be integrated directly into the Scrum Master certification ...) 

For this we have developed a workshop that you and your team can, for example, conduct as part of a retro.

Here are the steps. You should plan 1 to 2.5 hours for them, depending on the size of the team. (Don't forget, the retrospective is still a protected space):

  1. In the spirit of 5 phases of a retro, start with the “Set the stage”. (You can find general inspiration on this and on the further process at, for example Retromat).
  2. Continue with the “Draw Toast” exercise (see Ted Talk): Without extensive instructions, tell your team members that everyone should record for themselves how toast is made from their perspective.
    For this they have 2-3 minutes. Tip: Of course, it doesn't always have to be the toast example. Vary the task if necessary to generate exciting new drawings. 
  3. Let everyone present their drawing once. Discuss the similarities and differences of your “definitions” of the mental model. Did anyone paint people? One hand? Does everyone have a toaster? Did some draw additional products?
  4. Now continue moderating by explaining to the team what mental models are. For example, some immediately think of hands when they think of “making toast”.
    Engineers may think of the technology behind it. If necessary, look at the entire Ted video for this step.
  5. Explain to the team that a shared mental model of work can greatly facilitate teamwork. But it should reflect reality as closely as possible (Mathieu, Heffner, Goodwin, Cannon-Bowers & Salas, 2005).
    Everyone should contribute so that you as a team can develop the most accurate mental model possible. At the moment everyone probably has a different picture.

    To make it easier to understand here, you can do this here graphic demonstrate. It shows how 6 blind Scientists, depending on the perspective, would describe an elephant. Equivalently, everyone on the team has a different perspective on work & #8211; and none is wrong.

  6. In the next step you ask for the following: Everyone records (possibly on typical Kanban cards) his / her mental model of which processes your teamwork consists of. In addition, everyone can also record behaviors or characteristics that make up successful processes from his / her perspective.5
  7. Now the team has time to arrange the cards in a model or a meaningful structure.
    According to the Ted Talk, sometimes this works just as well or even more efficiently if there is no talking.

    Peter M. Senge is probably mainly responsible for the introduction of the term "learning organization". It expresses this important step in one Youtube video on the topic “Systems Thinking” like this:

    “If I am not ready to question my own mental models, then I can forget to discover hidden potential. You have to bring together different people from different angles who see different parts of the system. And seeing something together that none of them can see individually. ”

  8. At some point it becomes apparent that the team is reasonably agreed. Then everyone can sit down again and talk about the experience.
    Because good moderation means involving all team members as often as possible. The following questions can support good moderation that encourages reflection:
    • What part of the mental model was to be expected?
    • Which part of the mental model surprises you?
    • In your view, where is there still room for improvement in the mental model?
    • Which positive behaviors can you possibly add?
    • Which part of the mental model had any of you not thought of before?
    • How did it feel to develop the mental model silently?
    • Does the mental model fit your team goals and values?
    • Which parts of the mental model may dominate your processes? Do they dominate?
    • Which parts of the mental model should be considered more often?
    • Where is there a bottleneck or a particularly critical set screw in this model?
  9. After this reflection, a model should be agreed. And a conclusion should be found according to the five phases of a retro. (For examples of this and the general procedure, see Retromat). In the next step, the developed model can be called up regularly in retrospectives. It can and should serve as the basis for your reflection.
 

So much for a shared mental model of your processes. Maybe you will try the workshop (possibly in a modified form) in the next sprint. 

We look forward to hearing your experiences on the workshop concept. Maybe something different from what you know from the Scrum Guides. We are open to tips on how to improve it!

I hope that the description has given you at least one new idea, maybe even measures for improvement. (In the latter case, don't forget to stick to the agreed measures). 

If only agile team development was as easy as that Robotic process automation would…

Successful teamwork

In addition to this teamwork model, there is of course also a model for what constitutes successful teamwork on a psychological level. 

For one of the relevant factors, see for example ours Blog post on psychological security.

So who is going to make sure that it runs as a team? 

What is a “right” mental model for successful teamwork on a psychological level? Here we have reached the task of the Echometer software or our tool.

Meta-studies suggest that there are psychological variables that are general prerequisites for motivated teams. No matter whether they consist of project managers, specialist lawyers or software developers. 

We help you to integrate these general factors into your mental model for successful teamwork. 

To reflect on the factors and to continuously develop you. In other words, to optimize teamwork with the help of truly successful retrospectives. (Design Thinking and Lego serious play we can also recommend it).

Continuous improvement

If you want to improve your teamwork with Echometer retrospectives - in one continuous Improvement would come - contact us with pleasure. 

Otherwise, we would be happy to help you to include “mental models” in every Scrum Master certification. And share this post with your colleagues. # Thank you 🙂 

By the way, don't worry. One thing is not in question: This will not be our last article on retrospective methods! 

Possibly. you want to design your retro using playful methods, for example. Then hit the three methods from this article rather your taste.

And if you're interested in what the management team should be doing in agile transformations, take a look right here at 7 tips from our experience.

footnotes

1) For the statisticians: The results of a t-test showed that this difference is statistically significant (t (11) = -6.72, p <.01; one-sided). With a very high effect size of d = 4.1 (!).

2) This model was previously developed across various studies (including Johnston, Smith-Jentsch, & Cannon-Bowers, 1997; Smith-Jentsch, Johnston, & Payne, 1998).

3) Various researchers developed a model as part of the TADMUS program - Tactical Decision Making Under Stress. As a valid, reliable model, it should serve as the basis for later research in the military on teamwork. 

Within different studies (for an overview, see Ramachandran, Jensen & Salas, 2008) a model emerged for this. It has been referred to as the Anti-Air Teamwork Observation Measure (ATOM). It was then used as a basis for team training at NAVY and the Marines, for example as part of 9/11.

4) You don't want to give the impression that all retros are chronological. A classic retro refers to a “cliché” retro that observes the 5 phases of a retro and poses the “cliché” questions mentioned.

5) This would also be possible with other questions. So you could also ask how your team creates value from the perspective of each individual team member. 

Or where your team is in the value chain. However, this question would of course be less suitable as a basis for the ongoing retrospectives in the Scrum Sprint that take place afterwards.

References

  • Christian, MS, & Slaughter, JE (2007, August). Work Engagement: A Meta-analytic review and directions for research in an emerging area. In Academy of Management Proceedings (Vol. 2007, No. 1, pp. 1-6). Briarcliff Manor, NY 10510: Academy of Management.
  • Horowitz, B., & Kenerly, K. (2014). The hard thing about hard things: building a business when there are no easy answers. New York, NY: Harper Business.
  • Johnston, JH, Smith -Jentsch, KA, & Cannon & #8211; Bowers, JA (1997). Performance measurement tools for enhancing team decision-making training. In MT Brannick, Salas, E., & Prince, C. (Eds.), Team performance assessment and measurement: Theory, methods, and applications (pp. 311-327). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
  • Lee, M., Johnson, T., Lee, Y., O & #8217; Connor, D., & Khalil, M. (2004). The Conceptual Framework of Factors Affecting Shared Mental Model. Association for Educational Communications and Technology.
  • Mathieu, JE, Heffner, TS, Goodwin, GF, Cannon ‐ Bowers, JA, & Salas, E. (2005). Scaling the quality of teammates & #8216; mental models: Equifinality and normative comparisons. Journal of Organizational Behavior: The International Journal of Industrial, Occupational and Organizational Psychology and Behavior, 26 (1), 37-56.
  • Ramachandran, S., Jensen, R., & Salas, E. (2008). Developing Team Performance Models: From Abstract to Concrete. Interservice / Industry Training, Simulation, and Education Conference (I / ITSEC) 2008.
  • Rudolph, JW, Simon, R., Dufresne, RL, & Raemer, DB (2006). There & #8217; s no such thing as “nonjudgmental” debriefing: a theory and method for debriefing with good judgment. Simulation in Healthcare, 1 (1), 49-55.
  • Salas, E., Nichols, DR, & Driskell, JE (2007). Testing three team training strategies in intact teams: A meta-analysis. Small Group Research, 38 (4), 471-488.
  • Smith-Jentsch, KA, Cannon-Bowers, JA, Tannenbaum, SI, & Salas, E. (2008). Guided team self-correction: Impacts on team mental models, processes, and effectiveness. Small Group Research, 39 (3), 303-327.
  • Smith-Jentsch, KA, Johnston, JA, & Payne, SC (1998). Measuring team-related expertise in complex environments. In JA Cannon -Bowers, and Salas, E. (Ed.), Making decisions under stress: Implications for individual and team training (pp. 61-87). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
  • Tannenbaum, SI, & Cerasoli, CP (2013). Do team and individual debriefs enhance performance? A meta-analysis. Human factors, 55 (1), 231-245.

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FAQ about the online retrospective tool

No, you do not need to log in to Echometer or register to test the Retro Board and Retro Tool in Echometer.

You can try out Echometer's Retro Board via the following link without logging in: Try a Practice Round

First, simply register for free in Echometer. Then navigate to the workspace for which you would like to purchase the retro tool. If you haven't already done so, you can do so here: Create account in Echometer 1:1 tool

You can then manage your subscription (for both the retro tool and the 1:1 software) within the workspace settings.

You can choose from various payment methods when upgrading.

If you do not have access to your company's credit card yourself, you can simply add a buyer as a workspace admin in your Echometer workspace so that this admin can carry out the upgrade for you.

In Echometer there are two separate software solutions that are available within each workspace in Echometer:

  • 1:1 tool: Software for planning and conducting 1:1 meetings and tracking employee development
  • Retrospective tool: Software for planning and moderating retrospectives and tracking team development through team health checks

Both are independent software solutions, so they can be used separately from each other.

However, they work according to the same principles and aim to achieve the same added value: The continuous improvement of agile teams. In this respect, the simultaneous use of both software solutions is recommended.

Yes, you can assign administration rights to any number of users at both team level and workspace level. Please note the following:

  • Only workspace admins can take out and manage a Echometer subscription for a Echometer workspace.
  • Only workspace admins can create additional teams and name or remove additional workspace admins.
  • Team admins can appoint and remove additional team admins and team members for their team

If an agile team does not yet have much experience with retrospectives, a tool that effectively guides you through the retrospective and offers many templates is recommended:

  • Echometer is known not only for being an intuitive online retro board, but also for offering a very effective guided flow through the retrospective. At the same time, Echometer offers whiteboards that can be flexibly integrated into the retrospective. This makes Echometer very beginner-friendly.
  • Echometer also has extremely versatile and creative templates for retrospectives and team Health Checks that stimulate team reflection. Inexperienced teams in particular are very grateful for the food for thought in Echometer.

This makes Echometer the best software recommendation for beginners with agile retrospectives or Scrum beginners. By the way, you can try out Echometer for free without logging in: Echometer Try out the retro tool

Yes, you can collect and measure the eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score) in Echometer's Health Checks and surveys for retrospectives.

The eNPS can be evaluated in Echometer both at team level and across teams. For example, you can use the heat map in the Workspace Health Dashboard for cross-team evaluation.

The Echometer Retrospective software is designed to guide teams through the retrospective process with maximum ease and effectiveness, following best practices.

The steps and their sequence can be customized using the navigation within the retro. By default, a retrospective in Echometer is structured in this way:

  • Icebreaker
  • Review of open measures from past retros
  • Collect feedback (first Health Checks, then open questions)
  • Prioritization of feedback
  • Deriving action items
  • Conclusion of the retrospective with the "ROTI score" (Return on Time Invested)

Additional whiteboards (e.g. for workshops, for analyzing problems or for brainstorming measures) can also be added spontaneously at any point using the Retrospective navigation.

Yes, the Echometer Retrospective Tool offers various export options for retrospectives.

The most popular method is to generate a PDF that contains the feedback, the votes from the prioritization and the measures of the retrospective. It is also possible to share the retrospective via a sharing link.

A summary of the retrospective is also automatically sent to other participants by email after the retrospective, provided they are registered as team members in the team.

Yes, the online retrospective tool Echometer is one of the few retrospective software tools that also optimally supports the recording and tracking of measures:

  • Integration: You can also record measures directly in Jira via an integration.
  • Automatic follow-up: All open measures from past retros appear automatically in the measure review of the next retrospective for tracking purposes. This gives the team an overview of which measures are currently still open and creates a commitment to implementing the agreed measures.
  • Reminders: Measures are assigned to a person responsible, who automatically receives a reminder email when the measure is created so that the measure is not forgotten. In addition, each participant can flexibly receive action reminders via email and manage the action status at any time in the Echometer Retro Tool.

This means that Echometer's tool for team retrospectives has extensive and well thought-out functions for action tracking.

Yes, Echometer allows grouping and prioritizing (voting on points) of feedback on the Retrospective Board.

All participants can simply drag and drop cards onto each other and group them together.

There are 2 modes for prioritizing:

  • In "Live Voting" (the recommended mode), the moderator selects how many votes each participant should have and then starts the hidden voting. As soon as all votes have been cast, the moderator can close the live voting. During the voting, you can see how many votes are still to be awarded. After the voting is closed, the cards in the columns are automatically sorted in descending order so that the cards with the most votes are at the top.
  • In "Facilitated Voting" mode, the moderator simply selects how many votes are allocated to each topic. This mode is only necessary in exceptional cases.

Feedback can be optimally processed in the team using Echometer and the measures derived from it can also be easily recorded in Echometer in direct connection with the feedback.

Yes, with the online retrospective software Echometer you can collect asynchronous feedback on the retrospective in advance via a survey.

This means that obtaining feedback is asynchronous and you can make the most of the time spent together in retrospect.

Yes, absolutely: The online retrospective software Echometer is optimized for distributed teams working remotely and includes various options for interacting with each other in real time.

Both the retrospectives and the whiteboards are synchronized in real time for all participants and you can also optionally display your colleagues' cursors.

Yes, the online retrospective tool Echometer is a free tool that you can try out without logging in.

You can get started right away using this link: Echometer Retro Tool without login.

To invite other participants to your online retrospective in Echometer, you will need to register. Participants only need to enter their email address to join the retrospective, but do not need to log in.

After the retrospective, participants can optionally log in to access the summary even after the retrospective has ended.

Yes, Echometer offers many high-quality templates for retrospectives and the respective steps of a retrospective.

Echometer is the retrospective software tool with probably the most integrated retrospective template ideas and patterns:

  • The retro templates in Echometer contain sample questions for the retro board. These are often creatively based on specific topics in –, such as the "Kart racing retrospective" or the "Time travel retrospective".
  • Some retro templates also contain templates for Health Checks. For example, to measure the Spotify Health Check or psychological safety in the team.
  • When creating a team, you can choose from various team templates for management teams or scrum teams, for example. The team templates then put together a suitable team Health Check for the team.
  • For icebreakers in the retrospective, Echometer has over 50 ideas for sample questions that can be used spontaneously and randomly in a retrospective via a random generator.
  • And then there are whiteboard templates in Echometer, which contain ideas for check-ins, team building and the development of measures.

One of the greatest strengths of the Echometer Retro Tool are the various templates for retrospectives, which can be used as patterns for the creative design of your own retrospectives.

Here is a short list of the samples as an insight into the retrospective templates:

  • Happy, Wondering, Sad
  • Three Little Pigs
  • Team Morale Health Check
  • Easter and Christmas retrospective templates
  • DORA Retrospective
  • 5 agile values Health Check
  • Spotify Squad Health Check Radar
  • Psychological safety Health Check
  • DORA Retrospective
  • Unique retrospective templates such as the "7 Dwarfs Retrospective" or the "Football Retrospective"

If you are interested in the Retrospective Tools templates, take a quick look at the tool: Echometer Retro Templates & Templates

Yes, Echometer is an online tool for retrospectives that offers Jira integration.

With the Jira integration in Echometer, measures from Echometer can be created in Jira boards with a single click.

This makes Echometer a good retrospective software tool if your team is already using Jira.

Echometer is not available in the Atlassian Marketplace, but as separate software via my.echometerapp.com callable.

Yes, Echometer can be called a starfish retrospective tool, because with Echometer you can easily perform the starfish retrospective on an interactive online retrospective board.

Hot tip: If you are interested in the Starfish Retrospective, take a quick look at Echometer. Because the special thing about Echometer is that you can try out the starfish retrospective immediately (time-saving, without logging in) at this link: Echometer Starfish Retrospective Access without login

The Echometer Sprint Retrospective software has very extensive features, both for beginners and experts. The following features form the core of the tool:

  • Structured retrospective flow with integrated whiteboards for flexible brainstorming on individual focus topics
  • Retrospective board for brainstorming, presenting, grouping and voting with live collaboration
  • Moderator tools such as a timer, anonymity settings and control over the agenda step (focused for all participants)
  • Integrated tracking of measures from past retrospectives with automatic resubmission and incl. Jira integration
  • Unbiased brainstorming: Concealed cards on the retro board as well as on the integrated whiteboards prevent participants from influencing each other during the brainstorming session.
  • Simple, quick setup of the tool: Many users report that they were able to start their first retrospective in less than 10 minutes.

The following features are Echometer's unique selling points that are relevant for experienced Scrum Masters and team leaders:

  • Dashboard with retrospective history, including duration of the retrospective, number of participants and ROTI score
  • PDF and Markdown export of the retrospective after completion
  • The retrospective can take place asynchronously (e.g. also via a survey that is sent out before the retro) or in real time
  • Anonymous feedback via survey or on the Retrospective Board
  • Anonymous voting and prioritization of feedback on the retrospective board by awarding points
  • Query or measurement of the "ROTI score" (i.e. Return on Time Invested) after the retrospective for continuous evaluation and improvement of the retrospective by team members
  • Creation of Health Check surveys or pulse surveys as a happiness check and mood barometer in order to recognize trends (e.g. increasing dissatisfaction) in the team at an early stage
  • Health Check KPIs and agile metrics in the analysis dashboard including history
  • Health Check Surveys or pulse surveys also possible across teams

The Echometer Retrospective Tool offers the following features for retrospective template ideas, questions and samples:

  • 50+ Retrospective Template Ideas including Keep Stop Start, Happy Wondering Sad and the Starfish Retrospective
  • 200+ Retrospective Health Check questions and templates
  • Retrospective Icebreaker Library with 50+ fun retrospective check-ins to promote psychological safety and team spirit etc.
  • Whiteboard templates for visual, interactive retrospective icebreakers (including seasonal highlights for e.g. Easter and Christmas)
  • Whiteboard templates to structure and facilitate the creation of measures

Yes, the retrospective software tool Echometer is easy to use even for beginners who are not yet familiar with retrospectives.

Many users report that they were able to conduct their first retrospective in Echometer in less than 10 minutes of preparation - – in no time at all! Even users who are less tech-savvy can join the retrospectives in just a few simple steps.

Thanks to the structured process in Echometer, conducting the retrospective is also very easy. Setting up the Health Check is also not complex and does not require a large learning curve – you can get started very quickly.

On the testimonial page of Echometer you will find numerous confirmed user reviews: Echometer Testimonials

Echometer is the best software tool for retrospectives compared to alternative retrospective software tools such as Retrium, EasyRetro, Reetro, Neetro and TeamRetro for three reasons:

  1. Large selection of creative templates for retrospectives: Users of Echometer confirm that Echometer has a uniquely wide range of retro board ideas.
  2. Echometer has a simple and intuitive structure for retrospectives that guides teams through retrospectives using best practices. This also makes Echometer very beginner-friendly.
  3. Echometer offers a generous free version.

Users of Echometer particularly appreciate the unique function of Echometer to insert Health Checks into their agile retrospectives: These agile Health Checks make a massive contribution to stimulating team reflection and actively involving every team member in the retrospective.

To summarize, even alternative retrospective software tools such as Parabol do not have the unique features of the Echometer retrospective tool, which are both simple and effective. Therefore, it can be said that Echometer is the best software app for conducting agile sprint retrospective meetings.

Yes, in Echometer you can get anonymous feedback from the team.

Echometer is one of the few online retrospective tools that can be used to collect feedback anonymously.

In Echometer, feedback can even be collected anonymously before the retrospective via asynchronous surveys, which is unique among online retrospective tools and distinguishes Echometer positively from tools such as the retrospective software Parabol.

Yes, Echometer offers a generous free version of the online retro tool that can be used permanently free of charge for one team. This includes all functions for team retrospectives.

You only have to switch to a paid version for additional functions such as SSO, multiple teams or an unlimited number of retrospectives.

Further information on the variants of Echometer's retro tool can be found on the pricing page here: Retro-Tool Price List

The greatest strengths of the Echometer retrospective tool are its impact on time savings, participant engagement and productivity.

  • With hundreds of ideas for retrospective templates in combination with the integrated surveys, Echometer makes it very easy to prepare great retrospectives in just a few minutes.
  • Thanks to the guided steps and the playful and interactive retrospective board, implementation is child's play, focused and results-oriented at the same time.
  • The integrated tracking of measures and team health makes it easier to recognize trends in the team at an early stage and ensure that measures from retrospectives are not forgotten

Combined with the unique features of the agile Health Checks and flexible whiteboards, Echometer is one of the best, if not the best, retrospective tool on the market, even better than the better-known Parabol retrospective tool.

Yes, Echometer's retro tool is technically secure and GDPR-compliant.

Several European financial institutions and insurance companies have chosen to purchase Echometer's retrospective tools over other alternatives due to strict regulatory requirements.

The data is stored and securely processed in Germany. The contract for commissioned data processing with details on the technical and organizational security measures of Echometer's processing can be viewed here: https://echometerapp.com/gdpr-and-security/

Echometer's tool for retrospectives offers the following integrations:

  • Jira (for easy tracking of measures from retrospectives in Jira boards)
  • Google login
  • SSO (only in paid version)

Echometer are particularly positive about the increase in the effectiveness of retrospectives and the improved measurability of team development through Echometer.

Here are some officially confirmed quotes from users and customers of the Echometer software tool, all of whom hold leadership positions in agile teams:

Duane Hill, Scrum Master Coach:

  • "Echometer is like a combination of Miro and a really smart retro board. It even provides metrics on the effectiveness of my coaching so I can easily spot trends in team development. I really love this tool – highly recommended for anyone who wants to make their retrospectives more effective!"

Lena Tölke, Agile Coach at Deutsche Bahn Sales:

  • "Thanks to the targeted questions in Echometer, we keep coming up with new insights for our further development in retrospectives and can make these transparent and measurable for all team members."

Clemens Schöne, Scrum Master at Communardo Products:

  • "Echometer is like the combination of Mural and EasyRetro – I am thrilled! With Echometer, remote retros can work much better and even be fun!"

Patrick Böttcher-Exner, management position at Relaxdays GmbH:

  • "One major advantage is that Echometer allows us to carry out and track both remote and on-site retrospectives in one tool."

Carina McLane, Senior Software Developer at Volvo:

  • "As a Scrum Master, it's not about the tools, but this one really makes the work a lot more enjoyable. After two years of experience with Echometer, I can recommend it to anyone who wants to enrich their retrospectives and understand their team better!"

Echometer is the perfect retrospective software tool for busy team managers, team leaders, engineering managers, but also scrum masters and Agile coaches in distributed or hybrid agile teams ("remote teams").

Users particularly appreciate how much time the tool saves for retrospective moderators and how it increases the engagement of participants in the retrospective. Therefore, people who value time savings, retrospective effectiveness and engagement benefit most from the functions of Echometer.

In addition, Echometer offers an easy, playful introduction to retrospectives and is therefore particularly suitable for teams that do not yet have much experience with retrospectives or are just starting out with agile working methods.

The Echometer retrospective software works as follows:

  • Simple preparation of retrospectives using templates for retro formats, surveys and whiteboards
  • Intuitive and step-by-step implementation of retrospectives. Possible both online and on-site. Simply use the QR code on site so that participants can take part via their smartphone with the Mobile Companion app.
  • Automatic follow-up through export functions and integrated tracking of developments and measures including retro archive.

The implementation of a retrospective in Echometer is as follows:

  • The retrospective board allows the agile team to start with a fun welcome screen where they can wait for the rest of the team while playing an interactive game.
  • Once all participants of the retrospective have arrived, continue with an icebreaker question. Echometer has several icebreaker question templates, including both open-ended questions and visual whiteboard templates with workshops and small games.
  • After the icebreaker, you reach the screen for tracking measures: Here, the team reviews the open actions from past retrospectives and decides whether to keep, close or discard the actions. This step is unique to Echometer and significantly improves the quality of the continuous improvement process of agile teams.
  • Then it's on to Team Health Check: all team members answer various questions, for example a question about satisfaction in the team or questions about psychological safety. This type of question increases engagement in the retrospective, even with introverted team members, as well as the creation of agile KPIs to track the mood in the team over time.
  • Then you continue with the retrospective board, where everyone can leave anonymous feedback on open questions – if this has not already been done in advance via a survey. There are hundreds of retrospective templates for different retrospectives on the Echometer retrospective board.
  • Feedback is first written face down on the retro board so that the participants do not influence each other. The moderator can then reveal the feedback column by column.
  • Once the feedback on the retro board has been uncovered, presented to the team and any queries about feedback have been clarified, the prioritization, i.e. the voting, can continue.
  • Voting in Echometer is anonymous. During the voting process, you can see how many votes have already been cast and how many are still open.
  • At on-site retrospectives, you can also vote using your smartphone.
  • As soon as the voting is complete, you can derive measures. To do this, you can either create a measure directly for the feedback or open the feedback on a new whiteboard to analyze the problem in more detail and brainstorm ideas for measures.
  • The brainstorming of measures on a separate whiteboard within the retro is a point of differentiation for Echometer compared to other tools for retrospectives such as Parabol. In Echometer, you can create a separate whiteboard for each topic within the retro and thus optimally control the focus of the discussion.
  • Finally, Echometer enables the retrospective to be concluded by anonymously asking the entire team about the ROTI score on a scale of 0 to 10 (i.e. the "Return on Time Invested"): This helps the team and in particular the retrospective moderator to continuously improve the quality of the retrospectives within the team itself.

Given this unique, structured and flexible retrospective process, combined with the range of functions, Echometer is often described as the best tool for agile retrospectives.

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