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Agile Retrospective for the PMP Exam, Explained Simply
At the end of each sprint, the team looks at how it worked and chooses improvements.
In simple words
After each sprint, the team asks: what went well, what didn't, what will we try differently? It's about how you work together, not about the product.
What the PMP exam wants
A retrospective happens at the end of every iteration. The team asks: What went well? What didn't? What will we change next time? The result is one or two concrete actions the team will actually try in the next sprint.
It is about the process and how people work together, not about the product. It must be safe: people speak honestly without fear of blame. Because it happens every sprint, improvement is continuous, unlike a traditional lessons-learned session held only at the end.
Real example
Two stories got stuck because the team waited three days for a customer's drawing approval. In the retrospective, the team agrees: approval requests will be sent at the start of the sprint, not the middle. Next retro, they check whether it helped.
The common trap
A retro is not a sprint review (product demo), not a blame session, and not a status meeting. A recurring process problem belongs in the retro, but a blocker stopping work today is handled immediately.
Remember: “Retro looks back at HOW. Review looks at WHAT.”
🗝 Words to notice in the question
“how the team worked”, “recurring process problem” → retrospective
Try 2 practice questions
Choose an answer, or open “Show the answer.”
Question 1 The team keeps losing time because hand-offs between developers and testers are unclear. Where is the best place to address this?
Show the answer
Answer: C. A recurring problem with how the team works is a process issue: the retrospective.
Question 2 What is the main difference between a sprint retrospective and a sprint review?
Show the answer
Answer: B. Retro = how we work. Review = what we built, with stakeholders.
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