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Criterion
A structured reflection surfaces what was liked, learned, lacked, and longed for. It is a conversation format and does not validate actions automatically.
Agile
4Ls Retrospective
Paper illustration of two considered options leading to a decision record with a marked status and visible consequences.
Architecture
Architecture Decision Record
Paper illustration for Starfish Retrospective
Agile
Starfish Retrospective
Purposedifferent
When a sprint should not only be assessed but also learned from, it captures experience in clear learning categories. It records what worked, what's missing, and what should run differently next time.An ADR permanently records an architecture decision with context, trade-offs, and consequence. It creates continuity for later changes because the decision path stays traceable.When improvement options need to be sorted more finely than just start and stop, it brings observations into clear kinds of action. This makes visible what should be done more, less, newly, or continued.
Complexitysame
LowLowLow
Timedifferent
45–75 min15-45 min45-90 min
Participantsdifferent
Team members involved1-34-12
Formatdifferent
WorkshopAsyncWorkshop
Outputdifferent
4Ls Board, Learning Themes, Improvement ActionsADR File, Decision Log, RationaleStarfish Board, Practice Changes, Experiments
Tagsno overlap
RetrospectiveLearningReflectionTeam
ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance
RetrospectiveImprovementExperimentsTeam
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Often compared together

Methods with strong topical overlap with the current selection, not yet in the comparison.

Paper illustration of a team retrospective with three separate Start, Stop, and Continue areas and a shared action list.
Agile
Start Stop Continue
Paper illustration for Sailboat Retrospective
Agile
Sailboat Retrospective
The Scrum Team inspects people, interactions, processes, tools, and the Definition of Done, then agrees on a few testable improvements.
Agile
Sprint Retrospective