Reflection: Addressing negativity

Reflection: Addressing negativity

1. In the last quiz, you reviewed how Peta addressed accountability in a retrospective meeting. In this quiz, you will identify the ways Peta addresses negativity in the retrospective.

Alex: Are we going to talk about the fact that orders are still being made incorrectly in the kitchen? The customer survey shows that even with the tablets, the kitchen was still making the orders wrong.

Carter: I didn't see that in the survey.

Peta: I think that's a good point, Alex. Actually, Carter, the survey results show that 28% of the orders were incorrect. We had talked before about reducing food waste by reducing the number of dishes returned to the kitchen. Since the tablets eliminate any waitstaff error in ordering, I think we need to address this issue.

Carter: Like I've said before, it's not the kitchen, it's the generous send-back policy we have. We shouldn’t let people just sample dishes and send back whatever they don't like.

Alex: If we don't get this fixed, we won't have any customers to fix the tablets for.

Carter: We should change the policy. What they order, they get.

Alex: Obviously, you're not going to realize that it's really the kitchen staff getting things wrong.

Carter: I don't think it is.

Alex: There just doesn't seem to be any reasoning with you, even when we have the facts. I don’t know what else to do.

Peta: Hang on. I think we can agree that the goal for all of us is to have satisfied customers who have an enjoyable experience, right?

Alex: Right.

Carter: Yes.

Peta: Alex, I can understand your frustrations. Carter, would you commit to helping us find out exactly where the problem is?

Carter: It's not just me and the kitchen. Others should help out too.

Peta: We all will. Why don't we talk more about this later, and why don't we take a quick break.

Ready to get started?

I’m ready!

2. Describe one strategy Peta uses to address negativity during the retrospective and one other strategy Peta might have used. Write 1-2 sentences.

Asking team members to share their thoughts individually, calling a meeting break, and aiming to set a positive tone at the start of the meeting are all strategies to address negativity during a retrospective.

Devendra Kumar

Project Management Apprentice at Google

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