{"id":97,"date":"2012-10-02T17:24:43","date_gmt":"2012-10-02T15:24:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/proessler.wordpress.com\/?p=97"},"modified":"2012-10-02T17:24:43","modified_gmt":"2012-10-02T15:24:43","slug":"sexy-not-so-sexy-tasks-retrospective-activity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.peterroessler.de\/blog\/sexy-not-so-sexy-tasks-retrospective-activity\/","title":{"rendered":"“Sexy Not-So-Sexy Tasks” Retrospective Activity"},"content":{"rendered":"

In one of the last retrospectives a team member complained about the “not very sexy” tasks the team had to do. Well, we all know that life is not all beer and skittles. Nevertheless I think, the team member was actually pointing out, that the “sexiness” of tasks can have impact on the general motivation of the team, of course. That’s why I was introducing the “sexy <> not-so-sexy” activity in the last retrospective. (As this idea originated in the team member’s comment I also call it “The Thomas S. Approach”. \ud83d\ude42 )<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"sexy-not-so-sexy-tasks-agile-retrospective\"In general, the team’s job is split in tasks on a support level (approx. 65%) and project tasks on a product development level (rest of their time). The team is working with a Kanban system and is using several Scrum ceremonies (regular retrospectives, review meetings, agile estimation for project tasks etc.).<\/p>\n

The “sexy <> not-so-sexy” activity fits perfectly in between the check-in (“Setting the stage”) and “Gather Data” activities and is as easy as this:<\/p>\n

1) Prepare a chart that shows a line between “sexy” and “not-so-sexy”.
\n2) Put all “done” tasks on the table and let the team stick them on the line accoring to the task’s “sexiness”.
\n3) Discuss (“Any suprises? Any patterns?”)<\/p>\n

Why I think this acitivity works:<\/p>\n