Sprint Review Best Practices

Sprint review is where the team demonstrates what they built. It's not a status meeting—it's a feedback session. A good review shows working software, gathers real input from stakeholders, and builds confidence in the team's delivery. A bad review is a slideshow nobody cares about.

Review Purpose

Preparation

Before the Review

SPRINT REVIEW PREPARATION
═════════════════════════

TEAM PREP (1-2 hours before):
─────────────────────────────────────
□ Identify what to demo
  ├── Completed stories (Definition of Done met)
  ├── Priority order for demo
  ├── Skip: Incomplete work, technical tasks
  └── Focus: User-visible value

□ Prepare demo environment
  ├── Fresh data/test accounts
  ├── Working environment (staging)
  ├── Backup plan if demo fails
  └── Test the demo flow

□ Assign demo responsibilities
  ├── Who demos what
  ├── Who handles questions
  └── Order of presentations

□ Prepare context
  ├── Sprint goal reminder
  ├── What we committed vs. completed
  ├── Key decisions made
  └── Blockers encountered

PO PREP:
─────────────────────────────────────
□ Invite stakeholders
  ├── Who needs to see this?
  ├── Who can provide feedback?
  ├── Send agenda
  └── Confirm attendance

□ Prepare discussion points
  ├── Upcoming priorities
  ├── Questions for stakeholders
  ├── Backlog changes to discuss
  └── Roadmap context

Demo Planning

DEMO STRUCTURE
══════════════

FORMAT:
─────────────────────────────────────
Total time: 60 minutes (2-week sprint)

├── Welcome & Context (5 min)
│   ├── Sprint goal
│   ├── Who's here
│   └── What we'll show
│
├── Working Software Demo (30-40 min)
│   ├── Feature 1: [who demos]
│   ├── Feature 2: [who demos]
│   ├── Feature 3: [who demos]
│   └── Questions during each
│
├── Discussion (15-20 min)
│   ├── Stakeholder feedback
│   ├── Upcoming priorities
│   ├── Backlog implications
│   └── Questions and answers
│
└── Wrap-up (5 min)
    ├── Key decisions captured
    ├── Next sprint preview
    └── Thanks

DEMO ORDER:
─────────────────────────────────────
Lead with impact:
├── Most valuable feature first
├── Most interesting to stakeholders
├── Builds credibility
└── If you run short, you've shown the best

Skip:
├── Internal refactoring (unless stakeholder cares)
├── Bug fixes (mention briefly if significant)
├── Incomplete work (never demo half-done)
└── Technical details (unless audience wants)

Running the Review

Effective Demos

DEMO BEST PRACTICES
═══════════════════

SHOW, DON'T TELL:
─────────────────────────────────────
Not: "We implemented the search feature"
Yes: [Actually search for something]
     "Here's what happens when a user searches..."

Live software > Screenshots > Slides
(In that order of preference)

USER PERSPECTIVE:
─────────────────────────────────────
Frame as user action:
"As a customer, I can now..."
"Sarah needs to find her orders, so she..."
"This solves the problem where users couldn't..."

Not:
"We added an endpoint that..."
"The database now supports..."

REAL SCENARIOS:
─────────────────────────────────────
Use realistic data:
├── Real-looking user names
├── Realistic scenarios
├── Edge cases if relevant
├── Not "test123" everywhere
└── Stakeholders see themselves

HANDLE FAILURES:
─────────────────────────────────────
If demo breaks:
├── Stay calm
├── Acknowledge it
├── Move on or have backup
├── "Worked in testing—we'll investigate"
└── Don't waste meeting time debugging

Gathering Feedback

FEEDBACK COLLECTION
═══════════════════

ASK QUESTIONS:
─────────────────────────────────────
After each feature:
├── "What do you think?"
├── "Does this solve your need?"
├── "What's missing?"
├── "How would you use this?"
└── Actually listen to answers

DON'T:
├── Ask "Any questions?" (gets silence)
├── Defend immediately
├── Promise to fix everything
├── Dismiss feedback

CAPTURE FEEDBACK:
─────────────────────────────────────
Designate note-taker:
├── Feedback given
├── Who said it
├── Action items
├── Backlog implications
└── Add to GitScrum after

FEEDBACK TYPES:
─────────────────────────────────────
Validate:
├── "Yes, this is exactly what we needed"
└── Confidence to continue

Adjust:
├── "Good, but could we also..."
└── Minor additions to consider

Pivot:
├── "Actually, the real problem is..."
└── Major learning, backlog changes

Question:
├── "What about edge case X?"
└── May need more work or clarification

Common Problems

SPRINT REVIEW PROBLEMS
══════════════════════

NO STAKEHOLDERS SHOW UP:
─────────────────────────────────────
Causes:
├── Wrong people invited
├── Bad timing
├── Reviews feel useless
├── No relationship built

Fixes:
├── PO personally invites key people
├── Ask what time works
├── Make reviews valuable (real feedback acted on)
├── Share recordings if can't attend

TURNS INTO STATUS MEETING:
─────────────────────────────────────
Signs:
├── Slides instead of software
├── "We did X, we did Y..."
├── No stakeholder interaction
├── Feels like reporting up

Fixes:
├── Always demo working software
├── Ask for feedback explicitly
├── Limit team talking, invite discussion
├── Prepare stakeholder questions

INCOMPLETE WORK DEMOED:
─────────────────────────────────────
Signs:
├── "This is almost done..."
├── "Ignore this bug..."
├── "It'll work when..."

Fixes:
├── Only demo Done work
├── Definition of Done enforced
├── Skip incomplete, no shame
├── Mention progress without demoing

RUNS OVERTIME:
─────────────────────────────────────
Causes:
├── Too much to show
├── Long tangents
├── No timeboxing

Fixes:
├── Prioritize what to demo
├── Timebox each section
├── Scrum Master keeps time
├── Take detailed discussions offline

After the Review

Follow-Up

POST-REVIEW ACTIONS
═══════════════════

IMMEDIATELY:
─────────────────────────────────────
□ Update backlog with feedback
  ├── New stories from feedback
  ├── Adjustments to existing stories
  ├── Priority changes
  └── PO reviews and accepts

□ Capture action items
  ├── Who does what
  ├── By when
  ├── In GitScrum
  └── Follow up

□ Thank stakeholders
  ├── Appreciate their time
  ├── Show feedback is valued
  └── Build relationship

SHARE:
─────────────────────────────────────
□ Send summary
  ├── What was demoed
  ├── Key feedback received
  ├── Decisions made
  ├── Next sprint preview
  └── To: All stakeholders

□ Recording if made
  ├── For those who couldn't attend
  ├── Reference later
  └── Optional—not mandatory

GITSCRUM UPDATES:
─────────────────────────────────────
├── New tasks from feedback
├── Sprint marked complete
├── Metrics updated
├── Stakeholder comments captured
└── Backlog refined

GitScrum Integration

Review Support

GITSCRUM REVIEW FEATURES
════════════════════════

SPRINT SUMMARY:
─────────────────────────────────────
Sprint → Review → Summary

Shows:
├── Committed vs. completed
├── Stories by status
├── Velocity for sprint
├── Burndown result
└── Ready-made for review

DEMO PREP:
─────────────────────────────────────
Filter: Sprint = Current, Status = Done

Review list:
├── All completed stories
├── Assign demo order
├── Note who presents
└── Use as agenda

FEEDBACK CAPTURE:
─────────────────────────────────────
During review:
├── Add comments to stories
├── Create new stories from feedback
├── Tag with "feedback-[date]"
├── Assign follow-up

STAKEHOLDER VIEW:
─────────────────────────────────────
Share dashboard:
├── Sprint progress visible
├── What's completed
├── Roadmap context
└── Stakeholders can self-serve

Best Practices

For Sprint Reviews

1. Show working software — Not slides
2. Invite right people — Stakeholders who care
3. Gather real feedback — Ask and listen
4. Keep it focused — 1 hour max
5. Follow up — Action on feedback

Anti-Patterns

REVIEW MISTAKES:
✗ Slides instead of demos
✗ Demo incomplete work
✗ No stakeholders attend
✗ No feedback gathered
✗ Team performance critique
✗ Two-hour marathons
✗ Feedback ignored
✗ No follow-up actions

Related Solutions

• Running effective sprint retrospectives
• Sprint planning best practices
• Improving stakeholder communication