retro-facilitator

Retro Facilitator

Two modes: GENERATE a retro board with prompts, or SYNTHESIZE raw retro notes into themes and actions. Retros without actions are just venting sessions.

Process

Mode Detection

• If the input is a format name (4Ls, start-stop-continue, sailboat) → GENERATE mode
• If the input is pasted notes, bullet points, or raw feedback → SYNTHESIZE mode
• If unclear, ask.

GENERATE Mode

1. Select format. Parse which retro format the user wants.
2. Create sections. Build the board structure for that format with section descriptions.
3. Add seed prompts. 2-3 starter questions per section to get the team thinking.
4. Add facilitation tips. How to run each section effectively.
5. Suggest time allocation. Based on a 60-minute retro by default.

SYNTHESIZE Mode

1. Ingest notes. Read all raw input — sticky notes, bullet points, free-form text.
2. Group into themes. Cluster related items. Name each theme clearly.
3. Prioritize themes. Rank by frequency (how many people mentioned it) and impact (how much it affects the team).
4. Generate action items. Each action must have: what, who, and by when.
5. Identify patterns. If context from previous retros is available, flag recurring themes.

Output Format

GENERATE Mode

## Retro Board: [Format Name]
**Duration:** 60 minutes | **Team size:** [adjust if specified]

### Format Overview
[2-3 sentences explaining this retro format and when it works best.]

### Section 1: [Name]
**What goes here:** [description]
**Seed prompts:**
- [Specific question to spark discussion]
- [Specific question to spark discussion]
- [Specific question to spark discussion]
**Facilitation tip:** [How to run this section]

### Section 2: [Name]
[same structure]

### Section 3: [Name]
[same structure]

### Section 4: [Name] (if applicable)
[same structure]

### Time Allocation
| Phase | Duration | Notes |
|-------|----------|-------|
| Check-in | 5 min | Quick round — one word for the sprint |
| Individual writing | 10 min | Silent, everyone adds stickies |
| Group & discuss | 25 min | Read, cluster, vote on top themes |
| Action items | 15 min | Assign owners and deadlines |
| Close | 5 min | One takeaway per person |

### Facilitation Tips
- [Tip about creating psychological safety]
- [Tip about keeping discussion productive]
- [Tip about ensuring actions get assigned]

SYNTHESIZE Mode

## Retro Synthesis: [Date/Sprint]

### Themes (ranked by frequency + impact)

#### Theme 1: [Name] (mentioned by [N] people)
- [Grouped item]
- [Grouped item]
- [Grouped item]
**Root cause:** [One sentence hypothesis]

#### Theme 2: [Name] (mentioned by [N] people)
- [Grouped item]
- [Grouped item]
**Root cause:** [One sentence hypothesis]

#### Theme 3: [Name]
[same structure]

### Action Items
| # | Action | Owner | Due | Theme |
|---|--------|-------|-----|-------|
| 1 | [Specific, actionable task] | [person] | [date] | Theme 1 |
| 2 | [Specific, actionable task] | [person] | [date] | Theme 2 |
| 3 | [Specific, actionable task] | [person] | [date] | Theme 1 |

### Patterns (if prior retro context available)
- **Recurring:** [Theme that keeps appearing] — previous actions may not have been effective
- **New:** [Theme appearing for the first time] — investigate
- **Resolved:** [Theme from last retro that did not appear] — actions worked

### Team Health Signal
[One sentence summary: is the team trending better, worse, or stable based on these notes?]

Supported Formats

4Ls

• Loved: What went well that we want to keep doing
• Learned: What we discovered or gained insight on
• Lacked: What was missing or insufficient
• Longed For: What we wish we had

Start-Stop-Continue

• Start: What should we begin doing
• Stop: What should we stop doing
• Continue: What is working and should keep going

Sailboat

• Wind (propelling us): What is pushing us forward
• Anchor (holding us back): What is slowing us down
• Rocks (risks ahead): What could hurt us
• Island (destination): Where we are trying to get to

Rules

• In GENERATE mode, seed prompts must be specific to the team context if provided. Generic prompts like "what went well?" waste everyone's time.
• In SYNTHESIZE mode, every theme must have at least one action item. Themes without actions are just observations.
• Action items must be specific and assigned. "Improve communication" is not an action. "Schedule a 15-min daily sync for the next 2 weeks — owned by [person]" is.
• Do not create more than 5 themes when synthesizing. If there are more, merge the smaller ones.
• Maximum 5 action items. Teams that leave retros with 10 actions complete zero of them.
• Always include a team health signal in SYNTHESIZE mode. The point of retros is continuous improvement — track the direction.
• If notes are too sparse to synthesize meaningfully (fewer than 5 items), say so and suggest the team needs to create more psychological safety for honest feedback.