Templates · Themed & fun
Harry Potter
A complete retro in wizarding dress, with columns for good things, lessons, slowdowns, shout-outs and action items.
- Felix Felicis Good things!
- Baruffio's Brain Elixir What we learned!
- Petrificus Totalus What slowed us down?
- Triwizard Cup Shout-outs!
- Action items Things to take into consideration
What it is
A full retrospective under names borrowed from the Harry Potter stories. A luck potion stands for the good things, a brain elixir for what the team learned, a spell that freezes its target for what slowed the team down, and a tournament trophy for the shout-outs. The fifth column says plainly what it is: action items.
Goal
What any complete retro gives: what to keep, what was learned, what blocked, who deserves thanks and what to do next. The theme changes only the mood in which the team gets there.
When to use it
Take it with a team that knows the stories and enjoys them, when the usual board has become routine and a change of scenery would wake the session up. The column of shout-outs makes it a good choice after a demanding stretch.
When to pick another format
A theme works only when everyone is in on it. If someone has never read the books, the titles are riddles: Kudos covers much the same ground in plain words. After an incident the playful dress can jar, and a Post-mortem has close to the same columns in a sober tone.
How to run it
Read the descriptions aloud once, since the titles do not explain themselves.
- Felix Felicis: ask for the good things, whether they came from luck or from skill.
- Baruffio’s Brain Elixir: ask what the team learned, about the product, the tools or each other.
- Petrificus Totalus: ask what slowed the team down or froze it in place: a blocker, a wait, a decision that never came.
- Triwizard Cup: ask for shout-outs. A good one names a person and what they did.
- Action items: ask for things to take into consideration. Ideas can land here from the start.
Read the shout-outs aloud, then group and vote on the cards under Petrificus Totalus and discuss the first ones. Finish in the last column: keep the items the team commits to, and give each an owner.
Columns
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Felix Felicis | Good things! |
| Baruffio's Brain Elixir | What we learned! |
| Petrificus Totalus | What slowed us down? |
| Triwizard Cup | Shout-outs! |
| Action items | Things to take into consideration |
To start a retrospective from this template, see Create a retro.