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Look back on a project in twenty minutes
A simple exercise to learn from a project together, without it turning into blame
Why it’s worth your time
Most teams move on from a project without talking about how it went, so whatever went well or badly happens again by accident. Four plain questions, asked together and soon, turn what each person saw into something everyone learns from. Starting with what you expected, rather than what went wrong, keeps it about the work instead of about who to blame.
How to run an after action review
You’ll come away with a short list of what to repeat and what to change next time, agreed by the people who did the work.
We’ll turn this into a checklist you can tick off.
- Book twenty minutes soon after.
Within a week or two, while people still remember. Invite the people who did the work, and say it's about learning, not grading.
To: the people involvedNow that the project is done, could we take twenty minutes to look back on it together? I'd like to ask four questions: what did we expect to happen, what actually happened, why was there a difference, and what will we do next time.
It's not about finding fault. The goal is to leave with one or two things we'll repeat and one or two we'll change. Does a time work?
Swap the highlighted parts for your thing. Works on Slack, in email, or said out loud. - Ask what you expected to happen.
The goal, the plan, the timeline. People often remember it differently, and that alone can be the most useful thing you learn.
- Ask what actually happened.
Facts first, in order, from each person's view. Save the explaining and defending for the next question.
- Ask why there was a difference.
For the good surprises as well as the bad. Look for causes in the plan, the process and the handoffs, not in people.
You“What made that part go better than we planned?” - Decide what you'll do next time.
One to three things: something to keep and something to change. Write them down, name who owns each, and share the note.
Tip: If you're the most senior person there, speak last. What the most senior person says first tends to become what everyone says.
Good moments for this: within a week or two of finishing a projectafter a launch, event or deadlineat the halfway point of a long project
We’ll turn this into a checklist you can tick off.
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Making it work for you
Every workplace is different. Here’s what to think about before you start, and what might get in the way.
Things to think about
Asking what you expected first puts everyone on the same side of the table. It's hard to blame anyone for a gap between a plan and reality.
What might make this harder
Wait a few days, not weeks, and say plainly that it's about the process. Go first with something you'd do differently yourself.
Questions people ask
What is an after action review?
A short structured discussion, developed by the U.S. Army, that asks what was supposed to happen, what actually happened, why there was a difference, and what to do next time.
How do you run a project retrospective?
Get the people involved together soon after, and work through what you expected, what happened, why, and what you'll do next time. End with one to three changes, each with an owner.
How do you do a project post-mortem without blame?
Start with what you expected rather than what went wrong, look for causes in the process rather than in people, and have the most senior person name their own misses first.
How long should a project review take?
Twenty to thirty minutes is often enough for a small team. Keeping it short makes it easier to do after every project, not only the ones that hurt.
Why this works, and where it comes from
Most teams finish a project and go straight to the next one. The lessons are there, in each person's head, but nobody puts them together. So whatever went well or badly tends to happen again by accident. When teams do look back, it's often only after something goes wrong, which makes the look-back feel like an inquiry.
The after action review, developed by the U.S. Army, is a simple answer to that. Its core is four questions: what was supposed to happen, what actually happened, why was there a difference, and what will we do next time. It's meant to be short, done soon after, and focused on learning rather than on judging anyone's performance. Truest's version keeps those questions, puts them in plain language, and fits them into twenty minutes, so it's easy to do after every project, not only the ones that hurt.
Starting with expectations is the clever part. When the first question is what we meant to happen, the conversation is about the gap between a plan and reality, which is something everyone can look at together. It's hard to get defensive about a gap nobody planned. Asking why for the good surprises matters as much as for the bad. Things that worked usually worked for a reason, and naming the reason is how you get it again.
It works best when the most senior person speaks last and names something they'd change. It works worst when it turns into a hunt for who dropped the ball. If that's where your team's reviews tend to go, keep this one small and let the first question do its work.
Other simple things to consider
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An exercise written by Truest, based on our experience. Last updated October 2, 2026. We sell a career membership; where that’s relevant above, we say so.