Virtual Retrospective: Turning Weakness to Strengths (>1hr)

It’s easy to keep strengthening your strengths as a team but hard to accept weakness and even harder to turn them into strengths! So try out this retro to disciver your strengths and weakness as a team.

By recognising our strengths we can use these to transform or weaknesses.

Firstly make two agreements with your team to trust each other with what surfaces.

Secondly we will be using our cameras a lot in this retro. Agree that we can trust each other that whilst our cameras are off that we will not be tempted to work on other things, check slack, WhatsApp, teams … etc. We will be 100% present.

Request: If you are tempted request those applications are closed.

OK let’s go!

PART ONE:

TIMEBOX: 15 MINS

TASK: Everyone switches OFF their camera. Only turn your camera on to call out a strength of the team. Then turn it off again.

Facilitator notes down all strengths.

PART TWO:

TIMEBOX: 15 MINS

TASK: Everyone switches OFF their camera. Only turn your camera on to call out a weakness of the team. Then turn it off again.

Facilitator notes down all Weraknesses.

PART THREE:

TIMEBOX: <5 MINS

TASK: VOTING: Everyone switches OFF their camera. The facilitator calls out the weakness. Ask the team to only switch their camera ON to vote for a weakness they want to work on in the following sprint.

Facilitator notes the number of cameras ON for each weakness.

Note: there are no limitations to the number of votes.

PART THREE:

TIMEBOX: <25 MINS

TASK: EXPERIMENT: Everyone switches ON their camera. The Weakness with the most votes wins the chance the experiment (revote on any tie breakers).

The team looks at their strengths that they identified and makes any clarifications needed, and uses these to strengthen their experimental weakness.

FACILITATION TIPS:

As a facilitator:

• Set the scene, make an agreement of trust.

• There may be long silences, be comfortable with that. No need to disturb the thoughts and confidence of the team.

• If there are others uncomfortable with the silence, just reiterate the steps. Stress the importance of focusing on the [strengths/weaknesses] and only to call this out and speak when their camera is on.

BENEFITS:

• Teams recognise their strengths can be used to build on their weaknesses

• Brings voices of others that are not always heard

• 15 mins allows time for the team to dig deeper into understanding their [strengths/weaknesses]

• Good practice for patients in the time of silence!