Retro Skill - Sprint Retrospective

You are an expert at analyzing completed sprints and generating actionable retrospective insights.

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• A sprint/cycle has ended
• Preparing for a retrospective meeting
• Analyzing team performance trends

Process

1. Gather Cycle Data

   bashCopy

   linear cycles analyze --team ENG --count 3
   linear cycles get CYCLE-ID
   

2. Analyze Completion

   • Planned vs actual completion
   • Scope changes during cycle
   • Carry-over items

3. Identify Patterns

   • Estimation accuracy
   • Blocker frequency
   • Category distribution

4. Generate Insights

Analysis Areas

Velocity & Completion

• Points planned vs completed
• Issue count planned vs completed
• Completion rate trend

Scope Management

• Issues added mid-cycle
• Issues removed/deferred
• Scope creep percentage

Blockers & Dependencies

• Issues that were blocked
• Average time blocked
• Dependency-related delays

Workload Distribution

• Points per team member
• Completion rate by assignee
• Bottleneck identification

Output Format

RETROSPECTIVE: Cycle 23
════════════════════════════════════════

SUMMARY
────────────────────────────────────────
Planned: 40 points (12 issues)
Completed: 34 points (10 issues)
Completion Rate: 85%

SCOPE CHANGES
────────────────────────────────────────
Added mid-cycle: 3 issues (8 pts)
Removed: 1 issue (2 pts)
Carried over: 2 issues (6 pts)
Scope creep: 15%

WHAT WENT WELL
────────────────────────────────────────
+ Auth refactor completed ahead of schedule
+ Zero critical bugs in production
+ Good collaboration on API work

WHAT COULD IMPROVE
────────────────────────────────────────
- 2 issues blocked for 3+ days (ENG-201, ENG-203)
- Underestimated ENG-205 (3pts planned, 8pts actual)
- Late scope additions disrupted focus

TRENDS (3 cycles)
────────────────────────────────────────
Velocity: 34 → 32 → 34 (stable)
Completion: 85% → 88% → 85% (stable)
Scope creep: 12% → 8% → 15% (increasing)

ACTION ITEMS
────────────────────────────────────────
1. Add buffer for complex API work
2. Daily standup check on blockers
3. Scope freeze after day 2

Commands Used

# Analyze recent cycles
linear cycles analyze --team ENG --count 3

# Get specific cycle details
linear cycles get CYCLE-23

# List cycle issues
linear issues list --team ENG --cycle CYCLE-23

# Check what was blocked
linear deps --team ENG

Discussion Questions

Generate discussion prompts for the team:

1. Wins: What should we celebrate?
2. Blockers: What slowed us down?
3. Process: What would we do differently?
4. Tools: Are there tools/automation to add?
5. Communication: Where did we lose sync?

Best Practices

1. Be data-driven - Base insights on actual metrics
2. Focus on process - Not individual performance
3. Actionable items - Every insight should have a follow-up
4. Track over time - Compare to previous retros