Agile Retrospectives

5.2 Activity: Triple Nickels

Use this to gather data or as part of the Decide What to Do phase in an iteration, release, or project retrospective.

Purpose

Generate ideas for actions or recommendations. Uncover important topics about the project history.

Time Needed

Thirty to sixty minutes, depending on the size of the group.

Description

Form small groups. In the groups, each person has five minutes to brainstorm and write down ideas individually. At the end of five minutes, each person passes the paper to the person on his or her right. That person has five minutes to write down ideas that build on the ideas already written on the paper. Repeat until the paper returns to the original writer.

Steps

1. Set up the activity by saying “In this activity, our goal is to generate as many ideas as we can about [topic].” Then explain the process (see the brief description earlier).

2. Divide the team into small groups, with no more than five in a group. Hand out paper for people to write on. Make sure each person has a pen or pencil. Remind people to write legibly so the next person can read the ideas.

3. Describe the process: In the first round, each person will have five minutes to write down ideas related to the topic. Aim for at least five ideas. In subsequent rounds, each person writes ideas that are sparked by the already written ideas or builds on them in some way.

4. Time the group. After five minutes, ring a chime and tell the group to pass the paper to the right.