Debriefing Done Right: How to Turn Events into Learning
Tools to improve your team gatherings
(Note: All of the following advice is about how to debrief an event or project. This does not include how to debrief a conflict, because that requires a different approach.)
One of the keys to a high-functioning work team is that everyone is comfortable with sharing and accepting feedback. Taking time to reflect on an event, program, or initiative is crucial for nurturing a healthy feedback culture.
Debrief is simply the process of intentional reflection. In a well-run debrief, we're able to pick up practices we want to repeat, decide what we’ll do differently next time, and understand where we might innovate. As a team, we might also decide to move in totally new directions or go deeper with what worked best.
Debriefing is one of my favorite things to do on a team. It's an opportunity to recognize the work everyone has done to make something happen and also the chance to reflect and refine. It almost always means we’re making a commitment to be better, which is what the best teams always strive for.
The Basics: What is a Debrief?
A debrief is a form of reflection… but not every reflection is a debrief.
Debriefs include opportunities for participants to respond to three key questions:
What worked well?
What were some challenges and some growth opportunities?
What are some key takeaways or changes for next time?
This is not about assigning fault for the challenges we note. It’s about looking deeply at what happened and how it measured up to our team’s goals and expectations.
Because half the battle is just setting aside the time, it's hard to have a ‘bad’ debrief, especially if you remember these questions. However, it’s important to remember: A poorly structured debrief can feel like a waste of time for participants.
When Debriefs Go Wrong
I was recently at a debrief where the facilitator really just wanted positive reflections on the event. All of the questions were geared toward how great everything was and where people "found joy." He didn't create space for people to comfortably share challenges, he didn't ask questions about what could have been improved, and he didn't collect data about how the event might be more impactful in the future. Also, the questions were focused solely on a few aspects of the event, not all of the components.
Worst of all, he didn't share any of his own reflections—and he was one of the leaders! There was no modeling for how to tackle the key questions. It was pleasant enough as a gathering, but I would argue that it didn't provide much information that would be helpful if the group decides to do something similar in the future. (And I didn't think it was a good use of my morning.)
Now, it’s important to balance acknowledgments of success with identifying areas of improvements—but honesty from people who really care about the success of the group is key.
Setting Up for Success
When to debrief?
Some people like to debrief quickly after an event or project ends. However, I prefer waiting at least a couple of weeks—until we have any feedback data we requested and after the adrenaline has eased. I personally tend to need time to think about all the different elements and why things landed the way they did.
That said, I understand the impulse to discuss what happened immediately, especially if someone was harmed or if there is still time to make a correction. However, I think this is more like process evaluation than a true debrief.
Who should attend a debrief?
A good debrief includes everyone who had a hand in making the event happen and who might be involved in the future if it’s done again. These people are responsible for specific aspects of the event and want it to be successful. No one wants their area of work discussed when they’re not around, so it's better to be generous with invites.
I don't recommend inviting people who were not at all involved in the event to be part of the debrief, even if they’re curious. (You can always share notes with whomever you want later.)
Participants or attendees are metaphorically in the room, too, if you have survey/feedback responses on hand and are integrating an analysis of these into your debrief. I highly recommend this approach.
Who should facilitate a debrief?
A debrief can be facilitated by anyone in attendance—if the agenda and notetaking template is clear. However, people with the most positional power must be thoughtful when they speak. I recommend these folks go last as often as possible. If some encouragement is needed to get warmed up in the beginning, I recommend they ask questions but not share their own thoughts.
Remember to praise in public, critique in private. Positive personal feedback can be offered in the group debrief. Negative feedback can be shared later in a private conversation.
If the facilitator needs help documenting the discussion, I recommend having 1-2 people share notetaking responsibilities to make sure none of the learnings get lost. If no one wants to take notes, you might use a transcription notetaking application (like the Otter Meeting Agent)—but you’ll first have to get explicit permission from every attendee to record and transcribe the debrief in full.
Give people the opportunity to prep
Send the agenda topics or any data received beforehand. Not everyone will do this advance work (and don't operate your meeting on the assumption everyone has). However, some people really appreciate the opportunity to review and reflect on their own before doing so in a group setting. Some will take time to review and others will want to come fresh—and that's all fine.
Establish group agreements
If they’re not already established, set up group agreements for how the conversation will go. If your team already has group agreements for your meetings, reviewing them at the start is always a good idea. You also want to establish how people will share: Will you share in a circle or offer comments popcorn-style?
You might also start with written or anonymous responses to prompts before starting the discussion. This might help people with less positional power feel safer to share their thoughts.
What to Cover in a Debrief
In our project debrief template (included within our Shared Power in Supervision training), we include multiple topics to ask about using the key questions, including:
Team communication and planning
Marketing and outreach
Content and flow
Equity and inclusion
Budget and resources
Use of technology
Partners and relationships
We also take time to look at any data we collected from event participants. And finally, we decide what follow-up is needed and who will take which action steps.
An Example of Iterative Debriefing
Last year when we launched our Shared Power in Supervision training, we met for a debrief after each of the five training sessions. We invited the training facilitators, the tech support person, the survey data lead, and the person in charge of registration. We all looked at the template in advance to know what areas we'd discuss. The person in charge of registration led the discussions and also took notes with some help from others. I looked back at the notes from each training before I designed the agendas for our next one.
The entire team agrees that the fifth and final session last year was hands-down the best, because we reflected and refined through the year. Participant feedback confirms this assessment.
Final Thoughts
I recommend a debrief even for projects or events that you don’t plan to do again, simply because you learn so much as a team about how to better coordinate, communicate, and use resources in the best way possible for any future projects and to advance your mission more generally.
Debrief meetings often need their own dedicated time outside of regular meetings, but trust me, it's worth it. Your work will be better for them. However, I don't think you need to schedule a whole day to debrief or make it a huge deal. (I recommend debriefs be scheduled as 2-3 hour extended meetings. See: Do You Really Need a Retreat?)
Taking time to debrief shows respect for everyone's effort and signals that learning matters as much as doing. When we commit to debriefing, we commit to building the kind of team that learns, adapts, and gets better with every project. The practice of regular debriefing builds the feedback muscle every team needs to keep getting better together.