What is the role of retrospectives in the engineering process?

• A. To review what worked, what didn’t, and plan improvements for future iterations.
• B. To review compensation for team members.
• C. To publish marketing material.
• D. To assign new project roles.

Answer: (A)

Retrospectives are a regular moment for a team to reflect on the just-completed work and learn how to work better next time. The goal is to continually improve how the team operates—its process, collaboration, and workflows—so future iterations go more smoothly and deliver higher quality faster. In a retrospective, the team talks about what went well, what didn’t, and decides concrete actions to try in the next cycle. This learning-and-adaptation focus is what makes retrospectives central to the engineering process. The other activities listed—reviewing compensation, publishing marketing material, or assigning new project roles—aren’t about learning from the past cycle or changing how the team works, so they don’t fit the purpose of retrospectives.