An After Action Review (AAR) is a structured review or debrief process that allows a team to analyze what happened, why it happened, and how it can be done better in the future after the completion of a project or event.
Background on After Action Reviews
After Action Reviews originated in the US Army as a way to review missions, promote reflection activities, and exercises to improve performance.
They have since been adopted by many industries like business, healthcare, and education as an effective team building tool to facilitate continuous improvement.
Benefits of After Action Reviews
- Reflection and insight: An AAR provides a chance for team members to reflect on their actions and decisions. This builds self-awareness and insight into strengths and areas for improvement.
- Communication: Team members must communicate openly and honestly during an AAR. This builds trust and cohesion.
- Accountability: By reviewing results, teams hold each other accountable. This reinforces group responsibility.
- Problem-solving: Teams identify root causes of challenges and collaborate on solutions. This fosters critical thinking.
- Alignment: Discussing what went well and wrong helps align team goals and processes.
Example AAR
After a marketing campaign, the team could hold an AAR to discuss:
- What campaign strategies worked well vs didn’t work
- What factors influenced the results
- How well they collaborated cross-functionally
- What they would do differently next time
Objectives and Resources Required
- Objectives: Reflect on performance, identify successes and improvements, develop action plans.
- Resources: Meeting room, team participation, facilitator, whiteboard or screen to capture feedback.
Strategies for Effective AARs
- Set a positive tone by focusing on constructive learning vs blaming
- Designate a facilitator to keep discussion on track and manage group dynamics
- Encourage participation from all team members
- Capture feedback visually so key points are documented
- Close with a summary of lessons learned and action items
How to Conduct an After Action Review
- Set the Context: The facilitator provides an overview of the project or event and desired outcomes.
- Gather Insights: Team members share observations on what went well, what could be improved, and why results occurred.
- Identify Action Items: The team discusses solutions and creates an action plan with owners and timelines.
- Close the Loop: The facilitator summarizes key takeaways and actions to solidify learning.
Limitations of After Action Reviews
- Biased perspectives: Team members may present biased views of their own performance.
- Incomplete data: Without all perspectives, the team may lack the full picture.
- Lack of follow through: Without proper documentation and ownership, action items may be forgotten.
Conclusion
In summary, After Action Reviews are a simple but powerful team building tool to foster reflective learning, continuous improvement, and alignment.
By openly sharing perspectives in a blameless manner, teams can gain valuable insights into their performance and make positive changes for the future.
With proper facilitation and follow through, AARs can help strengthen communication, problem-solving, and accountability.
