Temperature reading
Unlike Check-in, which is a brief, single-question activity, Temperature reading explores multiple dimensions of the team's state. The trade-off for its richer information is that it takes more time and requires more active facilitation.
When to use it
- To open the retrospective, when the facilitator wants to gather signals about the team's state before deciding which activities to use in the following phases.
- To close it, to gather how participants felt about the retrospective itself.
- In retrospectives where the team is going through a period of tension or change, and it is worth exploring different dimensions before moving on to analyzing the sprint.
How to run the activity
- Prepare a poster or whiteboard showing the five elements where everyone can see them.
- Discuss each element, allowing enough time for the team to talk. The facilitator takes notes on the visual support.
The five elements
- Appreciations: an opportunity to recognize the contributions of other team members. Common phrasing: "I appreciate you, [name], for…". Not everyone is required to take part.
- New information: a space to share relevant information that other team members may not know: changes in the project, the customer, or the organizational context.
- Puzzles: anything that is not understood and sparks curiosity. There need not be answers: the goal is to name what remains unresolved or unexplained.
- Complaints with recommendations: a chance to point out what someone would like to change, provided it comes with at least one suggestion for improvement. Without a suggestion, it is just a complaint.
- Hopes and wishes: what each person hopes to get out of the retrospective or the next sprint.
Common mistake
Allowing complaints without recommendations. The most valuable element, and the hardest to facilitate, is "complaints with recommendations." If the facilitator does not insist on the recommendation part, the activity turns into a list of problems with no proposals for improvement, which breeds frustration and produces no actionable agreement. Requiring each complaint to come with a suggestion, even a tentative one, is what turns the diagnosis into a starting point for action.
Resources
🔧 Diseñar una retrospectiva [Designing a retrospective] (in Spanish)Template · Scrum Manager
📄 Primera fase de una retrospectiva: reflexión en equipo [First phase of a retrospective: team reflection] (in Spanish)Scrum Manager Blog · Jun 2023
📄 Ejemplo: cómo diseñar una sprint retrospective [Example: how to design a Sprint Retrospective] (in Spanish)Scrum Manager Blog · Aug 2023
📄 Liderar retrospectivas y resolución de conflictos [Leading retrospectives and conflict resolution] (in Spanish)Scrum Manager Blog · Aug 2023
📄 Apuntes: Agile Retrospectives [Notes: Agile Retrospectives] (in Spanish)Scrum Manager Blog · Aug 2023
References
- Derby, Esther; Larsen, Diana. (2006). Agile Retrospectives: Making Good Teams Great. Pragmatic Bookshelf.
See also
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