The Borsch Bonanza retrospective invites your team to reflect on processes in a fun, culinary-themed format, focusing on what to start, stop, and continue for team improvement.

When to use this template

This format is best after a challenging or high-activity sprint, especially when your team needs a fresh approach or greater engagement. Try it to reignite curiosity or shake off routine retro fatigue.

How to facilitate

Open with a quick welcome and set the kitchen scene to get everyone into the borsch spirit; explain the culinary metaphors used in each column.

Invite participants to share ideas in 'Add New Ingredients' for new practices, tools, or rituals worth trying.

Ask everyone to identify blockers or habits to 'Skim Off the Scum', focusing on things that are clouding team performance or morale.

Encourage celebration of success by adding notes to 'Keep the Flavor' about what's working well and should continue.

Allow time for group discussion to clarify, group, and prioritize the most important ingredients, scum, and flavors.

Collaboratively decide on 1–2 actionable changes or experiments to try based on what's been uncovered.

Wrap up by summarizing key takeaways and assigning owners for any agreed-upon actions.

Pro Tips

Use food-themed icebreakers to get everyone loosened up and engaged from the start.

Encourage specific examples—ask, 'What’s missing from our recipe?' rather than general suggestions.

Revisit actions from the previous retro to tie improvements directly into this retro’s 'ingredients'.

Allow for a moment of fun creativity—let someone invent a team borsch recipe based on the retro outputs.

FAQ

What if team members find the food theme distracting?

Embrace the fun but keep the focus on outcomes—remind the team that the metaphors are just flavorful wrappings for real team insights.

How can I ensure new ideas from 'Add New Ingredients' get acted on?

Facilitate discussion to select one or two items as experiments with action owners and timeframes, and review results at the next retro.

What if some team members dominate the discussion?

Use round-robin turns or anonymous submissions to ensure everyone contributes evenly, and gently prompt quieter folks to share.

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At a glance

Duration
30–45 min
Team Size
4-10 people
Columns
3 columns
Base Format
Start, Stop, Continue

Ready to get started?

Use this template to run your next retrospective

🍲 Borsch Bonanza

Gather 'round the virtual kitchen! In this hearty Borsch-themed retro, we're simmering project insights, sharing secret ingredients for success, and skimming off what sours the pot. Let’s spice things up and cook up improvements together!

Template Columns

🥕 Add New Ingredients

🥄 Skim Off the Scum

🍅 Keep the Flavor

About this template