Templates · Essentials

Plus / Delta

A two-column review of what to repeat and what to change, quick enough to close any meeting.

What it is

Two columns. Plus takes everything that is going well and should be repeated. Delta takes everything you want to change or that can be improved. Delta is the Greek letter used to note a change: the column is not a “minus”, and its cards are worded as changes, not as complaints.

Goal

Quick feedback, and a change or two to apply the next time.

When to use it

• At the end of a meeting, a workshop, a training session or a day, for feedback on the session itself.
• When a few minutes are all you have.
• As a frequent, light check between full retrospectives.
• With a large group: two columns keep the board readable.

When to pick another format

For a whole sprint, two columns are thin: there is no place for ideas, for what was learned or for how people feel. Went well, To improve, Action ideas is the next step up. If the same cards come back to Delta every time, the subject needs more than a quick review: Starfish looks at the team’s practices in detail, and Fishbone Analysis looks for the causes of one problem.

How to run it

1. Plus: ask what is going well and should be repeated. Specific cards help the most: which part of the session worked, and why.
2. Delta: ask what people want to change or what can be improved. Have them write the change itself: “start with the demo” says more than “the demo came too late”.

Read both columns, group what repeats, and vote on Delta. Take the most voted cards and decide who changes what for the next time. Do not try to answer every card: a short format keeps its value only if what it decides is done. Begin the next session by checking that the changes were made.

Columns

To start a retrospective from this template, see Create a retro.