Templates · Team & mood
Weather Forecast
Sorts the sprint into four kinds of weather, from what stopped the team to what went brightly.
- Stormy What has been tempestuous? What issues did you face, and what stopped the team from moving forward?
- Rainy What has been troublesome? What challenges did you face, and how did you overcome them?
- Cloudy What has been rosy? What positive experiences did you have, and did colleagues support you?
- Sunny What has been bright? Were the sprint goals met, and do you feel good about your contribution?
What it is
Four columns, each a kind of weather, from the worst to the best. Stormy is for what blocked the team, Rainy for the difficulties it got past, Cloudy for the good experiences and the support between colleagues, and Sunny for goals met and work people feel good about. Despite the name, the four questions look back at the sprint, not ahead, and Cloudy sits on the pleasant side.
Goal
The team tells apart what stopped it from what only slowed it down, sees what helped it through, and picks the storms it does not want to meet again.
When to use it
For a sprint retrospective when the usual format has gone stale. Four levels give more nuance than good and bad: the format keeps a difficulty the team overcame apart from one that stopped it.
When to pick another format
The difference between two neighbouring skies takes explaining, Cloudy most of all; with little time, the three columns of Happy, Meh, Sad are quicker. To talk about the risks ahead and where the team is going, take Sailboat. When the question is how tired people are, Energy Levels asks it directly.
How to run it
Read the four questions aloud first, so that nobody sorts cards by the name of the column alone.
- Stormy. Ask what has been tempestuous: the issues faced, and what stopped the team from moving forward.
- Rainy. Ask what has been troublesome: the challenges met, and how they were overcome.
- Cloudy. Ask what has been rosy: the positive experiences, and the support received from colleagues.
- Sunny. Ask what has been bright: whether the sprint goals were met, and whether people feel good about their contribution.
Group the cards and vote, giving priority to Stormy. For each top topic, look in Rainy for something that already worked on a smaller problem, and decide what to try. Record it as an action item with an owner. Before closing, read Sunny aloud, so that the session does not end on the storm.
Columns
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Stormy | What has been tempestuous? What issues did you face, and what stopped the team from moving forward? |
| Rainy | What has been troublesome? What challenges did you face, and how did you overcome them? |
| Cloudy | What has been rosy? What positive experiences did you have, and did colleagues support you? |
| Sunny | What has been bright? Were the sprint goals met, and do you feel good about your contribution? |
To start a retrospective from this template, see Create a retro.