Sprint Reviews can often feel like a drag. You know the drill: everyone is disengaged, some stakeholders never got the memo about psychological safety, the team is defensive, and the meeting takes forever. But it doesn’t have to be this way. Your Sprint Reviews can become productive, inclusive, and genuinely valuable with a solid agenda and the right approach. Let’s dive into how you can transform your Sprint Reviews from dreaded meetings into powerful conversations to improve the next iterations of the product.
Sprint Review Agenda
Attendees
Relevant Stakeholders
Product Owner
Developers
Scrum Master
Purpose and Agreements
Scrum Master: Explain the purpose of the Sprint Review and set the working agreements for a positive session.
Product Goal
Product Owner: Review the Product Goal and provide context and direction. This may include product strategy, vision, customer needs, business outcomes, target market, and roadmap. Check out resources on The Next Right Solution, Customer Job Description, Job Map, and Vision Statement Templates for more insights.
Sprint Goal
Product Owner: Share the Sprint Goal and the value intended to be delivered this Sprint. Sharing the Sprint Goal provides everyone with a clear snapshot of the value the team aimed to deliver during the Sprint. This sets the context for evaluating the work completed and ensures we’re all aligned on what success looks like. It's not about "how many items we got done," but rather "here is the intended impact."
Product Demonstration: Show, Don’t “Just” Tell
Developers: Showcase the completed product increments for that Sprint, letting stakeholders interact with the real thing. This hands-on approach not only builds pride among the developers but also ensures that stakeholders experience the product firsthand, seeing its features and functionality in action. Demonstrate how the product increments connect to the Sprint Goal and, if relevant, the overarching Product Goal. Empirical data and user feedback are presented to provide context on how the product is performing.
Feedback and Advice: Listening and Learning
Scrum Master Facilitates with Stakeholders: Gather feedback and advice on the Sprint outcomes to improve the product. (Optional Q&A) Learn more about gathering feedback with The Advice Game.
Update Product Backlog: Turning Insights into Action
Scrum Team (Stakeholders optional): Synthesize feedback and make necessary updates to the product backlog. Determine next actions and any further research needed. For turning feedback into actionable insights, refer to The Insights Game.
Why This Agenda Works
1. Attendees: The Right People in the Room
Success starts with having the right people. Relevant stakeholders, the Product Owner, Developers, and the Scrum Master—everyone needs to be there. This ensures everyone is on the same page and that the feedback you get is relevant and actionable.
2. Purpose and Agreements: Setting the Tone
Often overlooked but absolutely essential. Establishing the purpose and agreements at the start sets the tone for the entire session. This isn’t just a formality; it’s about creating a safe environment where all voices can be heard and valued. The Scrum Master needs to clarify that the Sprint Review is about making the product’s status transparent and inspecting and adapting the product, not about pointing fingers. Feedback should be constructive, focusing on improving the product, not judging the team on the amount of work completed or their processes.
3. Product Goal: Seeing the Big Picture
Before diving into specifics, we need to zoom out. Reviewing the Product Goal helps everyone see where we’re headed. It aligns the team and stakeholders on the broader vision, making sure we’re all pulling in the same direction.
4. Sprint Goal: Focus on the Now
Next, we zoom in. Sharing the Sprint Goal provides everyone with a clear snapshot of the value the team aimed to deliver during the Sprint. This sets the context for evaluating the work completed and ensures we’re all aligned on what success looks like. It's not about "how many items we got done," but rather "here is the intended impact."
5. Product Demonstration: Show, Don’t Tell
Here’s where the rubber meets the road. Developers showcase the completed product increments for that Sprint, letting stakeholders interact with the real thing. This hands-on approach builds pride among the developers and ensures that stakeholders experience the product firsthand, seeing its features and functionality in action. Demonstrate how the product increments connect to the Sprint Goal and, if relevant, the overarching Product Goal. Share any empirical data and user feedback if you have collected any.
6. Feedback and Advice: Listening and Learning
This is where the magic happens. The Scrum Master facilitates a session where stakeholders share their thoughts. This isn’t about defending the work—it’s about listening and learning. Feedback is a gift, and this is the time to receive it. An optional Q&A can also help clarify and deepen understanding. For a structured approach to gathering feedback, consider using The Advice Game.
7. Update Product Backlog: Turning Insights into Action
Finally, it’s time to act. The Scrum Team synthesizes the feedback and updates the product backlog accordingly. This ensures that the insights gathered don’t just sit on a shelf but translate into tangible next steps. It’s about continuous improvement, alignment, and adapting to stakeholder needs. To effectively turn feedback into actionable insights, check out The Insights Game.
Shared Ownership
A common question is, "Who owns the Sprint Review?" The answer: the whole team. Think of it like a potluck dinner—everyone brings something to the table. The Scrum Master often plays host, keeping things flowing smoothly. The Product Owner sets the direction and provides context, like the main course that ties everything together. And the Developers? They bring the delicious dishes they’ve been cooking up all Sprint, sharing what they've created. As you can see from the agenda, everyone has a part to play. It’s not just one person. This shared ownership makes the Sprint Review not just collaborative and effective but richer and more engaging.
Conclusion
This agenda is one way to run a Sprint Review, but it’s a good way that I have used with many teams that has helped transform Sprint Reviews from dread to engaged. It’s designed to make the session productive, inclusive, and valuable. By setting the right tone, focusing on goals, showcasing real work, and gathering actionable feedback, you can transform your Sprint Reviews from dreaded meetings into powerful tools for growth and improvement.
Ready to upgrade your Sprint Reviews? Download our sample Sprint Review agenda at learn.agileclassrooms.com and start making your Sprint Reviews engaging and effective. And if you want to see an example of this agenda in action, keep reading.
Example Sprint Review
Let’s say we have a fictional company, Tech Innovators, working on a new fitness app called FitTrack. Here’s how their Sprint Review might look:
Attendees:
Relevant Stakeholders: Marketing team, Customer Support, and a key client representative from a health club.
Product Owner: Alex
Developers: Priya, Jamal, Maria, and Taylor
Scrum Master: Jamie
Purpose and Agreements:
Jamie (Scrum Master): Kicks off the meeting by explaining the purpose of the Sprint Review and establishing agreements to ensure a constructive session. Jamie emphasizes that the purpose is to make the outcomes of the Sprint transparent, not to judge the team on how much work they got done or their processes. Feedback should be constructive and aimed at improving the product.
Product Goal:
Alex (Product Owner): Reviews the overarching Product Goal and provides context on product strategy, customer needs, and the roadmap. Alex refers to resources like The Next Right Solution to illustrate the vision using a simple version of the Pixar Pitch: "Once upon a time, fitness enthusiasts struggled to share their workout progress with friends. Every day, they manually updated their social media, which was time-consuming and frustrating. One day, we created FitTrack, an app that automates this process. Because of that, users could easily share their progress with a few taps, engaging more with their fitness journey. Until finally, sharing workout achievements became a seamless part of their routine, motivating them to stay fit and connected."
Sprint Goal:
Alex: Shares the specific Sprint Goal: "Increase the speed for users to share pictures with friends on social media."
Product Demonstration: Show, Don’t Tell
Priya, Jamal, Maria, and Taylor (Developers): Demonstrate the new social sharing feature, highlighting specific user stories and Product Backlog Items (PBIs) completed during the Sprint. They show how users can now share their workout progress on social media directly from the app and present data showing increased engagement from early user testing. They also explain how these increments connect to the Sprint Goal and the overarching Product Goal.
Feedback and Advice: Listening and Learning
Jamie: Facilitates a discussion where stakeholders provide their thoughts and suggestions. The marketing team suggests adding a feature to track the reach of shared posts. They use The Advice Game format to ensure structured feedback.
Update Product Backlog: Turning Insights into Action
Scrum Team: Adds the "tracking feature" to the product backlog. They also discuss conflicting opinions about the new drop-down menu. After some deliberation, they decide to keep it as is for now, opting to gather more user feedback before making any changes. They use The Insights Game to prioritize the next steps.
Ready to see this in action? Download our sample Sprint Review agenda start transforming your Sprint Reviews today.