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The Art of Facilitating Retrospectives

[And Other Team Meetings]

Conne X oXPierluigi Pugliese

Agenda

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Facilitation: Attitude

Facilitation: Structure

Choosing a Retrospective

Format

Facilitation Techniques?

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Facilitation: Attitude

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“I’m here for you”• Park your ego!• It’s about

supporting the team!

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Be a Host Leader!

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Host Leadership• Hosting a party: what does it mean for

you?

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Multidirected Partiality• Support & appreciate everybody+ideas• Promote agreement & support it

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From: Ivan Boszormenyi-Nagy

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Facilitation Basics: Team Dynamic

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Team Phases

Bruce Tuckman, “Developmental Sequence in Small Groups”, Psychological Bulletin, Volume 63, Number 6, Pages 384-99

5. Adjourning

4. Performing 1. Forming

3. Norming 2. Storming

?

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Proper start! “Set the Stage”

Proper end!“Close”

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Facilitation Basics: Structure

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12 Useful ideas

Structure1. Agenda + Structure

+ Minutes + Time[boxes]2. Greetings - Introduction -

Set the Stage3. Boundaries

• Identify• Define• Defend

4. Promote co-operation/Importance of the group for the results

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5. Framing

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1. What?

2. Why?

3. For What?/

Context?

Structure - Redundancy6. Visual, Acoustic, Kinaesthetic

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7. Redundancy: Up/Downtime

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Time

Attention

Time

Attention

Speaker

Listener

8. Setting

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8. Setting

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9. Use their offers!

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Structure - Other10. Open non verbal language11. Sense the room: where do

they need to go?12. Closing properly

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Choosing a Retrospective Format

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Retrospective format: how do you?

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Three Steps to a Retrospective

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1 Previous History 2 Support

Needed

3 Suitable Activities

Previous History• Expected benefit? / Specific topic?• Open conflicts? / Parties?• Current team dynamic?• Safe environment?• Limitations? Time, space, logistics, …• Previous [failed] attempts?• Company/group/team style?• Previous useful/dangerous

experiences?

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Support Needed

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Away from?

Maybe one day…

Committed?

Towards!

But where?

OscillatingToday

Obstacles

Fog

• What? What order? Variations? • Pitfalls? • Cultural fit?

Suitable Activities

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Maybe

you

need

a

taxono

my…

Taxonomy example: Starfish• Type of retro?• Team dynamics?• Cultural fit?• Usable in case of conflicts?• To avoid when?

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More of

Start doingStop doing

Keep doing

Less of

Taxonomy example: Starfish• Type of retro: open exploration• Team dynamics: performing, no big

conflicts• Cultural fit: “rational” groups [+]• Usable in case of conflicts: yes, but…• To avoid when: team in “fog” or with

heavy differences/conflicts, team in forming

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Timeboxing Activities•Time pressure: +delivery, -creativity•No timebox: +creativity, open-ended•Timebox as time awareness: ++, but interrupts flow

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Retrospectives: Research

•Please support Marina Haase’s research project:

Retrospectives:Exercise in Futility or Catalyst for Change?

http://retrospectives.marinahaase.de/

index.php/survey-on-retrospectives

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Questions?

Now or per email ppugliese: [at] connexxo [dot] com

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Pierluigi Pugliese

http://blog.connexxo.com

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