🌞 Summer Splash Retrospective
Dive into our Summer Splash Retro! Let’s soak up our team’s sunny moments, avoid sunburns (pitfalls), and make waves toward a brighter, smoother season ahead.
Template Columns
🍦 Start the Chill Vibes
Suggest fresh, cool ideas we should begin to make our summer even better.
Base column: Start🌵 Stop the Heat Waves
Point out what’s turning up the heat or burning us out—let’s leave it behind!
Base column: Stop🍉 Continue the Refreshments
Highlight what’s already keeping us refreshed and energized; let’s keep pouring it on!
Base column: Continue⛱️ Change the Sunscreen
Share ways to improve our approach so we don’t repeat the same burn—time to reapply and adjust!
Base column: ChangeAbout this template
The Summer Splash Retrospective invites your team to reflect on recent work using fun, seasonal prompts, driving positive energy while surfacing ideas, blockers, wins, and improvements for a smoother season.
When to use this template
Use this format when your team has wrapped up a spring or summer milestone, you need a fresh twist, or morale could use a sunny boost.
How to facilitate
Welcome the team and introduce the Summer Splash theme, explaining each column and how they relate to team improvement.
Invite everyone to silently add cards to each column: Start the Chill Vibes, Stop the Heat Waves, Continue the Refreshments, and Change the Sunscreen.
After ideation, ask participants to review the board, upvote or react to cards that resonate most, and consider areas with the biggest impact.
Discuss the highest-priority or most popular items in a collaborative conversation, focusing on achievements, pain points, and actionable changes.
Summarize agreements and document specific actions, owners, and due dates, ensuring next steps are clear for the whole team.
Close with a quick round of appreciative feedback or a light-hearted icebreaker to wrap up with positive energy.
Pro Tips
Lean into the summer metaphors—ask playful follow-up questions to get the team thinking creatively.
Encourage quieter team members to add cards anonymously to help surface honest feedback.
Tie each action item to a specific owner and follow up in your next meeting to maintain accountability.
Keep the pace upbeat and incorporate summer-themed visuals or music to encourage engagement.
FAQ
What if the summer theme feels too light for our team's current challenges?
Lean into the metaphors only as much as the team feels comfortable—focus on the core Stop/Start/Continue/Change structure to reach real insights.
How do I prevent the session from getting off-topic with the playful theme?
Set clear expectations for timing and topic focus at the start. Use the themed columns to anchor discussions in relevant observations and improvements.
What if there are too many cards to discuss in one session?
Group similar cards together and prioritize those with the most votes for discussion, then schedule follow-ups or spin off action items rather than trying to cover everything.
How do I encourage engagement in a remote setting?
Use icebreakers, visual cues, or even quick polls. Create space for everyone to add input before discussing as a group.
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At a glance
- Duration
45–60 min
- Team Size
4-12 people
- Columns
4 columns
- Base Format
Start, Stop, Continue, Change
Tags
Ready to get started?
Use this template to run your next retrospective