Running a Sprint Review That Actually Adds Value

What to do, what to avoid, and a template you can use right away.

I’ve taken part in hundreds — maybe even thousands — of sprint reviews over the years. Some have been energising and insightful. Others… not so much. I’ve seen teams fall into patterns that turn the review into a rushed presentation or a passive sign-off session, rather than the collaborative and reflective milestone it should be.

To help teams get more out of this essential ceremony, I’ve put together a Sprint Review Template based on what consistently works. While it’s tailored for Scrum, most of the ideas apply to any regular check-in, reflection, or demo day. I tell my teams that they are free to copy, adapt, and evolve it — but make sure the key pieces are still in place.

🔑 Key Elements in the Template

1. Start from zero: introductions and expectations

Always open by acknowledging who’s in the room. Introduce the team, clarify roles, and provide a brief overview of the context. It helps stakeholders understand who is responsible for what, and provides an opportunity to identify any blockers or cross-team dependencies before diving into the work.

2. Make the backend work visible

Not every sprint produces UI. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing to demo. Talk through API changes, architecture decisions, infrastructure updates, or performance improvements. Describe the why, not just the what (tell the story).

3. Environment and team updates

If anything in the team’s environment has changed — tooling, new clients, competitor analysis, big wins, org changes — share it. These shifts often have an impact on the team, and everyone should be aware.

4. Focus on team and product goals

Don’t just show features. Explain how the work contributes to broader goals. Use product or team metrics to show progress: Are we improving deployment frequency? Are we nearing a product milestone?

5. What’s next?

End by talking about what’s coming up. This helps stakeholders stay aligned, anticipate changes, and provide input while there’s still time to make adjustments. A sprint review should be a key point of alignment, not a one-way update.

🚫 Common Pitfalls to Avoid

1. Recording the session

Sprint reviews should be a safe space for honest conversation. Recording them can stifle critical feedback and reduce psychological safety. Encourage live participation and maintain a collaborative environment. If key stakeholders are too busy to attend the sprint review, a potentially dangerous issue may be waiting for you down the line (sort this — don’t record them as an easy get out).

2. Only showing highlights or shiny demos

It’s tempting to cherry-pick impressive features, but that leads to skewed impressions. Be transparent — show the full scope of what was accomplished and be honest about what wasn’t. Even a minor bug fix might be vital to someone in the room.

3. One person doing all the talking

This is a team event, not a solo performance. Rotate speakers and share out the load. Encourage developers to present their work to help build their softer skills, which will benefit them at more senior levels of their careers. It builds confidence, spreads ownership, and brings fresh voices into the conversation.

4. Skipping genuine feedback

The review isn’t complete without input. Ask direct questions: Did this meet your expectations? Anything you would change? Silence is not agreement… one again… silence is not agreement! Create space for discussion and ask for it directly.

5. Rushing through it in 30 minutes

A half-hour sprint review might feel efficient — but usually it means something is broken. Either the team isn’t producing meaningful work, or you’re shortchanging discussion. For a two-week sprint, one hour is a healthy baseline.

6. Holding the review after the retrospective

This flips the intended purpose of the events. Reviews should come before retros so the team can reflect on how the review went, how work landed with stakeholders, and whether delivery practices need to evolve.

📬 Pre and Post Review Habits

• Before the review, send around the details of what will be presented so that anyone interested can attend.
• After the review, send the slide deck to everyone and store it somewhere so you can easily refer back when you need to.

📄 Grab the Template

I’ve wrapped all of this into a Sprint Review Template that covers structure, talking points, and things to avoid. It’s designed to encourage meaningful, team-led, feedback-driven reviews — not passive presentations.

Use it as-is or adapt it for your team’s context. Just don’t skip the parts that make the session useful.

👉 View the Sprint Review Template

Let’s stop treating sprint reviews as an obligation and start using them to steer, align, and grow.