Decision-Making Retro
Looking back on recent choices can help you sharpen your judgment in the future. Learn from past decisions, and develop habits that lead to faster, more confident calls.
PREP TIME
0m
Run TIME
60m
Persons
1-2
5-second summary
- Reflect on what worked and what didn’t with recent decisions.
- Spot the moments that caused delays or second-guessing.
- Notice what helped you move forward so you can improve in the future.
WHAT YOU WILL NEED
- Shared document, like a Confluence page
- AI tool, such as Atlassian’s Rovo or your preferred AI tool
PLAY resources
How to run a decision-making retro
Learn from past decisions, and develop habits that lead to faster, more confident choices.
What is a decision-making retro?
A decision‑making retro is a look back at how decisions were made during a period of time or around a project, not just on the work itself.
In practical terms, it’s a meeting or async conversation where you look back and ask questions like:
- Which decisions went well, and why?
- Where did I get stuck or go in circles?
- Who needed to be involved but wasn’t (or vice versa)?
- What information was missing or late?
- How can I make future decisions faster, clearer, and with better ownership?
Why run the Decision-Making Retro Play?
Decision-making retros help improve your decision‑making system by clarifying roles (who decides vs. who’s consulted), tightening feedback loops, and agreeing on concrete tweaks. As a result, future decisions will likely be faster, more transparent, and easier to execute.
When should you do a decision-making retro?
Decision-making retros are especially helpful when one or more of these situations happen:
- There’s clear pain around a decision (e.g., it felt slow, ownership was fuzzy, documentation was poor, the right people weren’t involved, or context wasn’t clear)
- After a period with several impactful decisions, such as a major release, a contentious decision, or a surprise outcome
- When something changes that affects decisions, such as when you get a new manager, go through a reorg, or try a new decision-making framework or approach
Benefits of decision-making retros
Atlassian ran a decision-making retro experiment and found:
- A 19% increase in understanding which decisions to make independently vs. need consensus/approval
- 72% of participants felt they could increase the pace of their work
- 60% made more progress on top priorities than in a typical week
-
85% would recommend the decision‑making audit exercise to a colleague
Participants also reported:
- Greater confidence in personal judgment and knowing when to “make the call”
- Improved role clarity around who owns which decisions
- Higher self‑awareness of decision‑making patterns and stakeholder engagement
- Better team communication when decisions and audits were discussed
-
Stronger manager–employee relationships when audits were shared and feedback was given
1. List recent decisions
Est. time: 5 MIN
Create a table like the one below. Think back over the past few weeks, and list 3-5 recent decisions where you:
- Made a decision that moved work forward
- Delayed deciding
-
Asked for approval or consensus on the decisions you made or deferred making
To jog your memory, look at the meetings you attended, Slack or Teams messages where you asked for input or shared decisions, and the pages or documents you contributed to. Don’t worry if you can’t remember everything – just start listing decisions that come to mind.
If you have integrated AI into your work tools, you can use it to:
- Scan specific project spaces, pages, tasks, message channels, direct messages, and other interactions you’ve had during a specific timeframe
- Compare the output to the moments when you felt stuck or hesitant to move something forward
-
Refer to this Play to draft a table, like the one below, for your review
2. Reflect on uncertainty
Est. time: 10 MIN
Think about the following questions, and add notes to the “Uncertainty” column in the table.
For any decision, were you uncertain whether you:
- Needed to involve others to reach a consensus?
- Needed to involve others to gain approval?
Could make a call and move forward?
What do you think caused that uncertainty?
- Were you lacking the knowledge and data to make a good decision on your own?
- Were you unsure if you had the authority to make the decision on your own?
- Were you lacking a strong intuition in either direction?
- Were you concerned other stakeholders would feel slighted if they weren’t involved?
3. Spot repeatable wins
Est. time: 10 min
Think about the following questions, and add notes to the “Wins” column in the table.
- Did you involve the right people for the right reasons?
- Did you have a strong intuition, backed by data, that guided your decision?
- Did you make and document solid assumptions?
4. Get feedback or self-reflect
Est. time: 20 min
Think about the following questions, and add notes to the “Feedback or self-reflection” column in the table.
If your manager or collaborators are able to provide feedback, send a draft of your document to them or bring it to your next meeting. Ask:
- Where could I have moved more quickly?
- Did I use the right judgment?
What else would you have done?
If your manager or collaborators are not available, use your calendar or messages to reflect on:
- What slowed you down?
- Where could you have acted with more confidence?
5. Reflect or share
Est. time: 10 min
Summarize your notes or ask AI to help draft 3-5 bullet points you can scan before future decisions. You can also share the results with your manager during your next one-on-one, ask for their input, and clarify where you do and don’t need approva or consensus next time.
TIP: Send ahead a preview
If you’re gathering feedback from your manager, send the filled-out table ahead of time, along with a video message (like a Loom) walking them through the document and asking for their input.
Follow-up
Make it a habit
Run a decision-making retro whenever there is clear pain around a decision that was made, after a period with several impactful decisions (e.g., a major release), or when something changes that affects your decisions (e.g., you get a new manager or try a new approach).
You can also do a decision-making retro monthly, or add it as a standing agenda item during one-on-one meetings with your manager.
The more you reflect, the easier it'll be to move work forward without delay.
Variations
Sprint Retrospective
A sprint retrospective gives you an opportunity to review your latest sprint and make improvements for future sprints. These meetings are essential because regularly assessing and improving processes leads to quality results and fewer obstacles.
Still have questions?
Start a conversation with other Atlassian Team Playbook users, get support, or provide feedback.
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