Lean Coffee Retrospective Template

Lean Coffee is a structured but agendaless retrospective. There is no pre-set list of topics; the team builds the agenda in the room, votes on what matters most, and discusses each item in a short timebox. The result is a Lean Coffee retrospective that spends time only on what the team actually cares about, with democratic ordering and no single person steering the conversation.

When to use it

Reach for this lean coffee template when you want a retro that adapts to the team's real concerns rather than a fixed format, or when previous retros have drifted off topic. It also works well for distributed teams and for groups where a few voices tend to dominate, because voting levels the field.

Who attends

The team and a facilitator, roughly three to ten people. A simple board with three columns (To Discuss, Discussing, Discussed) plus a timer is all the equipment you need, physical or virtual.

How to run it

Explain the format, then have everyone write topic cards, one idea each. Dot-vote and order the cards by votes. Pull the top card into "Discussing" and talk about it for a short timebox, often five minutes. When the timer ends, do a quick thumb-vote: thumbs up to extend, thumbs down to move on. Work down the list this way, capturing any actions that emerge with owners and dates, and close with a brief check-out.

Facilitator tips

• Keep the first timebox short; you can always extend by vote.
• Use the thumb-vote rigorously so no topic overstays its welcome.
• Capture actions as they emerge instead of waiting until the end.
• Move the board columns visibly so progress feels real.

Common mistakes

• Letting one topic run long and starving the rest of the list.
• Skipping the vote and reverting to a leader-driven agenda.
• Discussing freely but never writing down decisions or actions.
• Setting timeboxes and then ignoring the timer.

Want the topics that win to lead to action? Run it in OrgTP to capture decisions, assign owners, and carry them into your next meeting.