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KPT retrospective

KPT stands for Keep, Problem, Try: what to keep, what got in the way and what to try next. A staple of continuous improvement in Japan, it is short enough to run every week.

3 columns · 20 to 30 minutes · Free, no sign-up

Your team joins with the link.

When to run a KPT retro

  • Short weekly or fortnightly retros.
  • When you want every problem paired with an experiment.
  • Teams building a habit of small, steady changes.

The three columns

Each column asks the team one question. Read the questions out before anyone writes, so everyone answers the same ones.

KPT retrospective template: Keep, Problem and Try columns with example cards
The KPT retrospective template, with two example cards in each column.

  1. Keep

    What went well and should stay?

    For example

    Stand-ups under ten minutes

    Anonymous

  2. Problem

    What got in the way or caused trouble?

    For example

    Flaky tests block the pipeline

    Anonymous

  3. Try

    What will we try next to solve a problem?

    For example

    Quarantine a flaky test the day it fails

    Anonymous

How to run a KPT retrospective

About 20 to 30 minutes for a team of five to eight, in one shared room.

  1. Open the room

    Press Start a retro with KPT: the room opens with the three columns ready, and teammates join from its link with just a name.

  2. Warm up

    Every retro opens with a warm-up question. Answers stay hidden until someone reveals them, then everyone reads them at once.

  3. Write in private

    Give everyone five minutes on the shared timer. Short and often is what KPT is for. Nobody sees anyone else's cards until the reveal.

  4. Reveal and group

    Anyone can reveal the board, after a three-second countdown. Drag cards that say the same thing onto each other to group them.

  5. Talk it through

    Read each problem and ask for a try that answers it. Tries make natural action points, and next week the Keep column shows which ones worked.

  6. Agree on action points

    Add each decision as an action point from the board's sidebar. The summary lists them, and a retro run under a team keeps them on the team's page.

Formats like KPT

All 11 templates →

  • Plus Delta

    Two columns for a fast retro: what worked and what to change.

    Plus · Delta

  • Start Stop Continue

    Decide what the team should begin, drop and keep doing.

    Start · Stop · Continue

  • Starfish

    Sort your practices into five buckets, from keep doing to stop doing.

    Keep Doing · Less Of · More Of · Stop Doing · Start Doing

Questions about KPT retros

What does KPT stand for?

Keep, Problem, Try: what the team should keep doing, what caused problems and what it will try next.

How is KPT different from Start Stop Continue?

KPT names problems instead of things to stop, and asks for something to try against each one. Every change is treated as an experiment, which suits teams that hold a retro every week.

How long does a KPT retro take?

20 to 30 minutes, which is short enough to hold one every week.

Can we change the columns?

Yes. Rename a column or add one, up to five, in the launcher before you start or in the room's settings during the retro. A card stays with the column name it was written under, so rename a column before the team writes in it.

Do participants need an account?

No. Teammates open the room link and type their name. They can sign in with Google or GitHub at any time and keep everything they wrote.

Ready for a KPT retro?

Your team joins with a link, and nobody needs to sign up.

All templates