There are two important events in the Scrum framework for Agile: Sprint Review and Sprint Retrospective. These events are crucial in the iterative and incremental approach of Scrum and help the team to improve continuously. It is important to understand what is a sprint review vs retrospective.
What is a Sprint Review?
A Sprint Review is a meeting that happens at the end of each sprint, where the development team presents the work they’ve done during the sprint. The team demonstrates the features that were developed, and stakeholders provide feedback. The goal of the Sprint Review is to inspect the Increment and adapt the Product Backlog if necessary.
During the review, stakeholders get to see the new functionality, and the development team can clarify any doubts and receive feedback. This feedback helps the team to improve the product and make sure it’s meeting the stakeholders’ expectations.
Example of Sprint Review
At the end of the sprint, the development team presents the new login feature they’ve been working on. The stakeholders provide feedback on the feature, suggesting a few improvements. The team takes note of the feedback and adds the improvements to the Product Backlog.
What is a Sprint Retrospective?
A Sprint Retrospective is a meeting that happens after the Sprint Review, where the development team reflects on the past sprint. During the retrospective, the team discusses what went well, what didn’t go well, and what could be improved. The goal of the Sprint Retrospective is to identify areas for improvement and come up with a plan to implement those improvements in the next sprint.
The retrospective is an opportunity for the team to look back and see how they can improve their process, communication, and collaboration. The team can use various techniques to facilitate the retrospective, such as the “What Went Well/What Didn’t Go Well” exercise, or the “Start/Stop/Continue” exercise.
Example of Sprint Retrospective
The development team meets after the Sprint Review to reflect on the past sprint. They discuss what went well, what didn’t go well, and what could be improved. They realize that the communication between the team members could be improved, and they come up with a plan to have daily stand-ups to keep everyone in sync.
Sprint Review vs Sprint Retrospective
A Sprint Review is a meeting where the team presents the work done during the sprint, while Sprint Retrospective is a meeting where the team reflects on the past sprint. The Sprint Review is focused on the product, while the Sprint Retrospective is focused on the process. The Sprint Review involves stakeholders, while the Sprint Retrospective only involves the development team.
The goal of the Sprint Review is to inspect the Increment and adapt the Product Backlog, while the goal of the Sprint Retrospective is to identify areas for improvement and come up with a plan to implement those improvements in the next sprint.
Sprint Review and Sprint Retrospective are essential events in Scrum that help the team to continuously improve. While the Sprint Review is focused on the product, the Sprint Retrospective is focused on the process. By holding these meetings regularly, the team can ensure that they’re delivering value to the stakeholders and improving their processes at the same time.
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