How to carry out a Post-Mortem
A four step guide to carry out a Post-Mortem.
A Post-Mortem is a meeting conducted at the end of a project to determine what worked, what could be improved and what should not happen again.
Step One: Schedule the Meeting
Schedule one or more meetings with the team that executed the initiative.
It may be in your interest to separate the post-mortem into various meetings that separate functions such as business, management and development.
You may also wish to hold a post-mortem between leadership and the client.
Step Two: Prepare the Participants
Send out an email to the participants of the meeting asking them to come with 3-5 points for the following questions:
- What went well?
- What could have gone better?
- What should never happen again?
Additionally, ask the participants to rate their performance using Andy Grove's OKRs/CFRs system:
Step Three: Hold the Post-Mortem
Hold the meeting(s) and make sure to take notes as you go around one-by-one, hearing and discussing answers to the questions and ratings.
To avoid things going off-track, if anything comes up that requires a larger conversation, take a note and state that it will be discussed at the end.
At the end, discuss the larger conversations - unless they should be held as break-out sessions with a reduced portion of the participants.
Step Four: Send out an E-Mail
Use the notes taken in Step Three to send out an email elaborating on the discussions and outcomes of the post-mortem.
This e-mail is intended to boost performance, efficiency and moral whilst also paying attention to things that have to change.
Be kind and motivational.
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