The Telephone Game retrospective helps teams tune up their communication by starting new habits, stopping disruptive practices, and continuing what works.

When to use this template

Use this retrospective when your team wants to sharpen communication after misunderstandings, onboarding changes, or during fast-paced projects that demand clarity.

How to facilitate

Start by introducing the Telephone Game theme, reminding the team how messages can change as they pass from person to person

Invite everyone to silently add thoughts to each column based on recent communication wins, issues, and possible improvements

After silent brainstorming, group similar comments in each column and discuss them together, focusing on specific examples

Facilitate a conversation to identify the most impactful changes the team can make to improve communication

Prioritize a few concrete actions or experiments, assigning ownership to ensure follow-through

Pro Tips

Ask team members to share real, recent examples to make improvement areas specific

Use short time-boxed discussion rounds to keep energy high and avoid overanalyzing

Encourage everyone to add at least one idea in each column to balance perspectives

For distributed teams, allow asynchronous idea submission ahead of the session to capture quieter voices

FAQ

What if team members are hesitant to call out communication problems?

Normalize discussing communication as a team growth activity, not a blame game. The familiar Telephone Game theme helps reduce defensiveness.

How do we handle too many improvement ideas?

Group similar items and vote as a team to focus on a few actionable changes each sprint.

What if the same issues reappear week after week?

Ask the team to reflect on why previous actions haven’t stuck, and brainstorm new, creative ways to address persistent challenges.

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At a glance

Duration
35–50 min
Team Size
4-12 people
Columns
3 columns
Base Format
Start, Stop, Continue

Ready to get started?

Use this template to run your next retrospective

☎️📞 The Telephone Game

Let’s connect the lines! Inspired by the classic Telephone Game, we’ll tune into our team’s communication. Share signals that are clear, static we need to silence, and conversations to keep ringing.

Template Columns

🔊 Pick Up the Line

🔇 Disconnect the Call

🔁 Keep the Call Going

About this template