One of the facets of the Agile methodology I appreciate is the emphasis on transparency. Rather than ignoring the proverbial elephant-in-the-room, Agile helps us to quickly identify (and hopefully address!) the real issues that affect our teams. This aids the continuous learning process as we must constantly face hard realities and find creative ways to address them.
A vital part of the Agile process is the retrospective. In this process, the team members identify the events which have occurred during a previous time-period. They then seek to discover patterns in these events. Finally, the culmination comes as the team identifies ways they can continue doing what is working, improve on what is working, and avoid doing what has not been working.
It is important to enter the retrospective process with a dispassionate view as to the events which have occurred prior to the retrospective. It is non-productive to place blame on individuals or circumstances. Instead, we must work together to face reality in the form of hard facts. As we reflect on these factual events, we work collaboratively to identify possible solutions that enable the team to reach for ever more productive heights.
This isn't to say there is no room for feelings in a retrospective. Certainly the team members may experience a range of emotions as they reflect on the events of the previous time-period. But the idea is to avoid any form of us-them mentality, or to blame circumstances for the outcomes.
Retrospectives can be an exhilarating and enlightening experience. They are a great tool for improving the continuous learning of your teams.
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