Massive Christmas Retro

Bring festive cheer to your sprint retrospective with this comprehensive Christmas-themed template that combines team bonding, reflection, and friendly competition. Perfect for end-of-year retrospectives or adding seasonal energy to your regular sprint reviews.

What Is the Massive Christmas Retro?

The Massive Christmas Retro is a four-part retrospective experience that guides teams through the traditional retro structure while keeping energy high with festive activities. Starting with a memory game icebreaker, moving through structured reflection, adding forward-looking wishes, and culminating in a competitive present-delivery challenge, this template transforms the standard retrospective into an engaging team event.

This template works particularly well for final sprint reviews before holiday breaks or year-end reflections, but can be adapted for any sprint where you want to boost team morale and engagement while maintaining the rigor of a productive retrospective.

Benefits & When to Use

Use this template when you want to:

• Energize end-of-year retrospectives with festive themes that match the season
• Combine reflection with team building through interactive activities
• Keep remote teams engaged during potentially low-energy pre-holiday sprints
• Balance serious reflection with fun to maintain participation and honest feedback
• Create memorable team moments that strengthen relationships beyond work tasks

This template is ideal for teams that have been working hard and deserve something special, or when you notice energy flagging as holidays approach. The competitive element at the end rewards participation and adds excitement without diminishing the value of the reflection itself.

How to Run a Massive Christmas Retro Session

Total Time: 60-75 minutes

1. Christmas Memory Game (5-10 minutes)

Start with an attention-grabbing icebreaker that sets a playful tone.

• Enable Private Writing mode before beginning
• Show participants the hidden frame with Christmas icons for exactly 10 seconds
• Hide the frame and give teams 30 seconds to list as many items as they remember on index cards
• Reveal answers and celebrate the winner
• Use this as a light-hearted way to get everyone focused and engaged

2. Tree Decoration & Christmas Wishes (10 minutes)

Transition from the game into forward-looking positivity.

• Invite everyone to decorate the Christmas tree by dragging ornaments from the box onto the tree
• Ask participants to write a "Christmas Wish" for the coming year on sticky notes
• Frame wishes around work goals, team aspirations, or improvements they'd like to see
• Have team members share their wishes and discuss common themes

Template components:

• Christmas tree graphic for decoration
• Ornament decorations to drag and place
• Space for wish sticky notes

3. Sprint Retrospective Discussion (25-30 minutes)

Move into structured reflection using the Christmas-themed categories.

Presents (What went well):

• What good things happened during the sprint?
• What unexpected gifts or wins did we receive?
• What successes should we celebrate?

Elves (Who helped us):

• Who or what helped our team succeed?
• What support systems worked well?
• What help could we use in the next sprint?

The Grinch (What didn't go well):

• What obstacles or problems did we face?

• If the Grinch tried to ruin our next sprint, what would they do?

• How can we prevent or address these issues?

• Give 5 minutes for silent reflection and note-taking

• Group similar themes together

• Discuss patterns and insights as a team

• Vote on top items if needed

4. Deliver the Presents Competition (15-20 minutes)

End with high-energy team competition that rewards participation.

• Divide the team into Red Team and Blue Team
• Explain the rules: drag presents from team trays onto the colored sticky notes
• Hit the "GO" button to start the countdown timer
• Teams race to deliver as many presents as possible before time runs out
• Count deliveries and celebrate the winning team with a virtual prize or recognition

Template components:

• Red Team and Blue Team present trays
• Colored sticky notes representing delivery destinations
• GO button to start the countdown
• Clear All Presents button to reset between rounds if desired

5. Actions & Closing (5-10 minutes)

Wrap up with concrete commitments.

• Review the key insights from the reflection discussion
• Create action items in the Actions zone
• Assign owners to each action (Ludi will track and send reminders)
• Thank everyone for their participation and energy

Tips for a Successful Session

Before the session:

• Test the memory game frame visibility controls so you can smoothly reveal and hide it
• Decide whether wishes should focus on professional goals, team culture, or both
• Consider preparing a small virtual prize for the winning team (e.g., gif, recognition in team chat)

During the session:

• Keep energy high by moving briskly through activities
• Don't let the fun elements overshadow the reflection—both matter
• If the Grinch category feels too negative, reframe it as "What tried to steal Christmas?" for a lighter tone
• For larger teams, consider extending timers or running multiple rounds of the present delivery game

For remote teams:

• Encourage video-on participation to capture the festive spirit
• Use the frame hiding feature dramatically to build suspense in the memory game
• Consider adding Christmas music during the decoration and competition phases
• Make time for casual chat during the tree decoration activity

Managing the competition:

• Emphasize that it's all in good fun—the real win is the reflection you've completed
• If one team is significantly smaller, consider adjusting present quantities in the trays
• Use the competition as an energizer, not as the focus of the retrospective
• For very competitive teams, consider making teams random or having facilitators participate

This template proves that effective retrospectives don't have to be serious affairs. By wrapping structured reflection in festive activities, you maintain the value of the retro while creating an experience your team will actually remember—and look forward to repeating.