The Skeleton Crew Reflections retrospective helps lean teams reflect openly on what propelled them forward, the burdens they faced, and concrete steps to strengthen their agility moving ahead.

When to use this template

Use this retro when your team has operated with fewer members, faced resource constraints, or needs to build resilience after a sprint with stretched capacity.

How to facilitate

Set the stage by inviting the team to step into the Skeleton Crew mindset, acknowledging the challenges and resourcefulness required to operate with a lean group.

Ask team members to share specific moments or factors that acted as Whispering Winds, propelling the crew forward despite limited resources. Encourage everyone to elaborate on why those moments made a positive difference.

Turn to Shackling Bones and invite participants to surface the key obstacles or burdens that weighed on the team. Prompt honest discussion about growth-limiting factors and encourage psychological safety.

Facilitate a collaborative discussion around the patterns observed. Help the team look for root causes and connections between the winds and the shackles.

Guide the crew toward Bone-Building Plans: actionable ideas, strategies, or agreements that would make future voyages smoother, even with a bare-bones crew.

Converge on clear ownership for top actions and capture them for follow-up. Close by celebrating the strengths displayed, reinforcing team spirit, and emphasizing continuous improvement.

Pro Tips

Prompt quieter crew members with direct invitations to share their perspective—they often have unique insights in lean settings.

Create a visual narrative board showing the winds and shackles side by side to spark deeper discussion around their balance.

Discuss not just what worked but also why certain strategies were effective with a smaller team; these can be instructive for future tight-resource scenarios.

Challenge the team to identify a single impactful action that would have eased the biggest burden—focus on areas with high leverage, not just quick wins.

FAQ

What if our team has more than eight people?

This format is best for small teams, but larger groups can split into sub-crews for parallel retros and then share main takeaways together.

How do we address sensitive obstacles without causing blame?

Emphasize a collective focus by framing challenges as environmental, not personal. Encourage blameless candor—it's about learning, not fault-finding.

What if we struggle to find effective action items?

Probe deeper into the top shackles by asking 'what one thing would have lightened your burden?' and seek input on specific, feasible steps.

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At a glance

Duration
40–55 min
Team Size
3-8 people
Columns
3 columns
Base Format
Wind, Anchors, Actions

Ready to get started?

Use this template to run your next retrospective

💀🦴 Skeleton Crew Reflections

Gather, brave skeletons! In this retro, we examine how our agile ship sailed with a lean crew, sharing boosts, burdens, and next steps to ensure we stay lively—even with bare bones.

Template Columns

🌬️ Whispering Winds

⚓ Shackling Bones

🦴 Bone-Building Plans

About this template