Retrospective #12: Werewolf

Fan of the card game Werewolf, I decided to take inspiration from this game to create a new playful retrospective format.

Feel free to read our other retrospectives on this dedicated page:

Our retrospectives

Required Material for Werewolf

For the Werewolf retrospective, you will need to prepare some equipment. Here is the list of materials that the facilitator will need to run this retrospective:

• square posts
• pens
• a board (or paperboard)

Here is a picture to print with all the characters useful for your retrospective:

Print several sets of cards for the same team (at least 2 times).

The overall time to plan is 40 minutes.

All Steps

Here are the different steps to follow to complete this new retrospective. The cards will be shuffled and placed face down in the center of the table.

Step 1 of Werewolf

The Scrum Master lets each participant draw a card at random. They must not reveal their card to other participants.

All participants must fill out a post-it following the theme defined by the card they have drawn. For example, if a participant has drawn a “werewolf,” they will have to write a post-it on the topic “that was negative within the team.”

When each participant has written their post-it, the Scrum Master will ask them to read what they wrote on the post-it. While one participant reads what they have written on their post-it, the others will try to guess the character they embody.

In parallel, the Scrum Master will group together post-its with the same ideas to improve the readability of the different ideas raised by the team.

The participants will draw cards at random during two rounds to encourage them to speak on different topics; this way, participants can discuss topics they might not have dared to talk about otherwise.

Duration: 20 minutes

Step 2 of Werewolf

For the 3rd round, the Scrum Master will let the participants choose the card they want; the Scrum Master can suggest they keep their cards secret if they want to have fun. However, this allows each team member to talk about the subject of their choice at least once.

Duration: 10 minutes

Step 3 of Werewolf

The participants will conduct a Dot Voting to define the 3 main axes of improvement on which the team will work during the next sprint.

The Scrum Master will not forget to ask participants to choose a volunteer responsible for monitoring the implementation of these improvement axes. Empowering someone is essential to ensure that the improvement axes will not be forgotten after the retrospective.

Duration: 10 minutes

Conclusion: Retro Lego

Truly original, this Werewolf retrospective encourages team members to discuss subjects that aren’t always pleasant while maintaining a positive context. Don’t hesitate to try the Werewolf retrospective and let me know if your participants enjoyed this format.

Useful link: retrospective in French